The Mask of Power explores the psychological forces and hidden vulnerabilities that draw people to tyrants and dictators. The poem examines how fear, desire for stability, misplaced admiration, and the lure of authority can eclipse personal freedoms and reason. It lays bare the cost of forsaking liberty for security and comfort, revealing the frail peace that lies beneath a tyrant's reign.

 

They come with iron will and hardened gaze,

A promise forged in fire, cast in steel;

Their words, relentless as a blinding blaze,

Appeal to wounds that time could never heal.

 

In turmoil’s depths, where fear and doubts entrap,

They trade away their liberty for "peace".

When order wavers, caught within the gap,

They clutch at fictions framed as sure release.

 

The tyrant wears a guise of parent strong,

An iron guide for those who’ve lost their way;

With ruthless care, he rights what seems as wrong,

And molds the world to meet his iron sway.

 

For some, the lure of power gleams too bright;

They crave the fame they’ll never dare to claim,

Enchanted by the tyrant’s ruthless might,

Their dreams reflected in his fierce, cold flame.

 

Where harshness rules, compassion fades to grey;

A charm born not of kindness, but control.

To such a force, they yield and fall astray,

Blind trust a comfort to the weakened soul.

 

As others gather close, the pull grows strong;

For fear of doubt, they join the swelling throng.