He was found by the Bureau of Statistics to be <br />One against whom there was no official complaint, <br />And all the reports of his conduct agree <br />That, in the modern sense of the old-fashioned word, he was a saint, <br />For in everything he did he served the Greater Community. <br />Except for the war till the day he retired <br />He worked in a factory and never got fired, <br />But satisfied his employers, Fudge Motors Inc. <br />Yet he wasn't a scab or odd in his views, <br />For his union reports that he paid his dues, <br />(Our report of his union shows it was sound) <br />And our Social Psychology workers found <br />That he was popular with his mates and liked a drink. <br />The Press are convinced that he bought a paper every day, <br />And that his reactions to advertisements were normal in every way. <br />Policies taken out in his name prove that he was fully insured, <br />And his Health-card shows that he was once in hospital but left it cured. <br />Both Producers Research and High--Grade Living declare <br />He was fully sensible to the advantages of the Installment Plan <br />And had everything necessary to the Modern Man, <br />A gramophone, a radio, a car and a frigidaire. <br />Our researchers into Public Opinion are content <br />That he held the proper opinions for the time of the year; <br />When there was peace he was for peace; when there was war he went. <br />He was married and added five children to the population, <br />which our Eugenist says was the right number for a parent of his generation, <br />And our teachers report he never interfered with their education. <br />Was he free? Was he happy? The question is absurd: <br />Had anything been wrong, we should certainly have heard.<br /><br />WH Auden<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/the-unknown-citizen-4/
