<P> Mac Flecknoe (full title: Mac Flecknoe; or, A satyr upon the True - Blew - Protestant Poet, T.S.) is a verse mock - heroic satire written by John Dryden . It is a direct attack on Thomas Shadwell, another prominent poet of the time . It opens with the lines: </P> <Dl> <Dd> All human things are subject to decay, </Dd> <Dd> And when fate summons, monarchs must obey </Dd> </Dl> <Dd> All human things are subject to decay, </Dd>

Short summary of mac flecknoe by john dryden