It is by all odds the loftiest of cities. It even managed to reach the highest point in the sky at the lowest moment of the depression.
E. B. WhiteRead
Advice to young writers wo want to get ahead without any annoying delays: don't write about Man, write about a man.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Focus on individual stories rather than generalized concepts to engage readers effectively.
E. B. Whiteβs quote emphasizes the importance of personal storytelling in writing. By encouraging young writers to write about a 'man' instead of 'Man', he suggests that relatable, specific narratives resonate more with readers than abstract ideas about humanity.
Themes
WritingStorytellingIndividualNarrativeCreativity
In practice
Example use cases
A writing workshop for young authors discussing the power of personal stories.
More from E. B. White
All quotes βIt isn't silence you can cut with a knife any more, it's interchange of ideas. Intelligent discussion of practically everything is what is breaking up modern marriage.
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The main thing I try to do is write as clearly as I can. Because I have the greatest respect for the reader, and if he's going to the trouble of reading what I've written -- I'm a slow reader myself and I guess most people are -- why, the least I can do is make it as easy as possible for him to find out what I'm trying to say, trying to get at. I rewrite a good deal to make it clear.
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A good farmer is nothing more nor less than a handy man with a sense of humus.
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A despot doesn't fear eloquent writers preaching freedom- he fears a drunken poet who may crack a joke that will take hold.
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All writing is communication; creative writing is communication through revelation-it is the Self-escaping into the open.
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