Poetry Quotes

Poetry is also the physical self of the poet, and it is impossible to separate the poet from his poetry.

Poetry is a mere drug, Sir.

Poetry and consumption are the most flattering of diseases.

Stadium rock and commercial rock are the opposite of what poetry needs. An audience of around 200 is ideal for poetry.

Poetry is of so subtle a spirit, that in the pouring out of one language into another it will evaporate.

I use rock and jazz and blues rhythms because I love that music. I hope my poetry has a relationship with good-time rock'n roll.

Literature is a state of culture, poetry is a state of grace, before and after culture.

The poetry of this one is called philosophical, of that one philological, of a third rhetorical, and so on. Which is then the poetic poetry?

For a poet to depict a poet in poetry is a hazardous experiment; in regarding one's own trade a sense of humour and a little wholesome cynicism are not amiss.

If there were no poetry on any day in the world, poetry would be invented that day. For there would be an intolerable hunger.

The sources of poetry are in the spirit seeking completeness.

Once every five hundred years or so, a summary statement about poetry comes along that we can't imagine ourselves living without.

Nothing truly convincing - which would possess thoroughness, vigor, and skill - has been written against the ancients as yet; especially not against their poetry.

Plot, rules, nor even poetry, are not half so great beauties in tragedy or comedy as a just imitation of nature, of character, of the passions and their operations in diversified situations.

Poetry leads us to the unstructured sources of our beings, to the unknown, and returns us to our rational, structured selves refreshed.

Written poetry is different. Best thing is to see it in performance first, then read it. Performance is more provocative.

The higher Greek poetry did not make up fictitious plots; its business was to express the heroic saga, the myths.

Poetry is one of the few nasty childhood habits I've managed to grow out of.

I've never read a political poem that's accomplished anything. Poetry makes things happen, but rarely what the poet wants.

One can't write for all readers. A poet cannot write for people who don't like poetry.