W. H. Auden

W. H. Auden in 1973
photo: Donal F. Holway / NYT
no copyright infringement intended
(http://www.nytimes.com/imagepages/2012/04/01/nyregion/01POET2.html)

He is regarded by many as one of the greatest writers of the 20th century. His work is noted for its stylistic and technical achievements, its engagement with moral and political issues, and its variety of tone, form and content. The central themes of his poetry are love, politics and citizenship, religion and morals, and the relationship between unique human beings and the anonymous, impersonal world of nature.

(wiki)

• Auden about Sydney Smith
• Reading John Carey: W.H.Auden, Rhythm and Poetry
• John Betjeman

(A Life in Books)