Who wrote "Humankind cannot bear very much reality"

TSELIOT

This modernist poet also penned The Waste Land and used the pseudonym "Old Possum" for his whimsical cat poems.

The clue quotes a famous line from T.S. Eliot’s poem "Four Quartets"—specifically "Burnt Norton"—where he reflects on humanity’s limited capacity for harsh truths. The answer is his last name, "TSELIOT," which is how it’s often stylized in crosswords (omitting the periods and apostrophe for brevity). If you know Eliot’s work or recognize the poetic phrasing, the answer clicks immediately.