Poets are being pursued by the philosophers today, out of the poverty of philosophy. God damn it, you might think a man had no business to be writing, to be a poet unless some philosophic stinker gave him permission.
William Carlos WilliamsRead
As birds' wings beat the solid air without which none could fly so words freed by the imagination affirm reality by their flight.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Imagination and words are essential for expressing and confirming our reality.
This quote by William Carlos Williams emphasizes the fundamental role of imagination and language in shaping our understanding of the world. Just as birds cannot fly without the air that allows their wings to beat, our thoughts and ideas find their full expression through words, which serve to affirm and share our realities. The interplay between imagination and language is vital for communicating and realizing our experiences.
Themes
ImaginationWordsRealityExpressionLanguage
In practice
Example use cases
During a motivational speech highlighting creative expression.
More from William Carlos Williams
All quotes βFor the beginning is assuredly the end- since we know nothing, pure and simple, beyond our own complexities.
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It was the love of love, the love of swallows up all else, a grateful love, a love of natural, of people, of animals, a love ingengering gentleness and goodness that moved meand that I saw in you
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O frost bitten blossoms, That are unfolding your wings From out the envious black branches. Bloom quickly and make much of the sunshine. The twigs conspire against you! Hear hem! They hold you from behind.
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No opinion can be trusted; even the facts may be nothing but a printer's error.
William Carlos WilliamsRead
It is almost impossible to state what one in fact believes, because it is almost impossible to hold a belief and to define it at the same time.
William Carlos WilliamsRead
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