Once I stop being a citizen of the U.S.S.R., I will not stop being a Russian poet.
Interpretation
Identity and artistry can persist beyond political affiliations.
Joseph Brodsky's quote reflects the profound connection between his identity as a Russian and his identity as a poet. He suggests that while political boundaries and citizenship may change, the core of who he is—his artistic expression and heritage—endures, emphasizing that art transcends political contexts and national identities.
In practice
This quote could be used in a discussion about the role of artists in times of political upheaval.
Basically, it's hard for me to assess myself, a hardship not only prompted by the immodesty of the enterprise, but because one is not capable of assessing himself, let alone his work. However, if I were to summarize, my main interest is the nature of time. That's what interests me most of all. What time can do to a man.
One always pulls the trigger out of self-interest and quotes history to avoid responsibility or pangs of conscience.
On the whole, infinity is a fairly palpable aspect of this business of publishing, if only because it extends a dead author's existence beyond the limits he envisioned, or provides a living author with a future he cannot measure. In other words, this business deals with the future which we all prefer to regard as unending.
The invention of ethical and political doctrines, which blossomed into our own social sciences, is a product of times when things appeared manageable. The same goes for the criticism of those doctrines, though as a voice from the past, this criticism proved prophetic.
Try not to pay attention to those who will try to make life miserable for you. There will be a lot of those - in the official capacity as well as the self-appointed.
To put it in plain language, Russia is that country where the name of a writer appears not on the cover of his book, but on the door of his prison cell.
Asking an artist to talk about his work is like asking a plant to discuss horticulture.
I don't think in terms of optimism and pessimism when writing a story. I am telling a story.
It would be difficult for me not to conclude that the most perfect type of masculine beauty is Satan, as portrayed by Milton.
Here's the truth you have to wrestle with: the reason that art (writing, engaging, leading, all of it) is valuable is precisely why I can't tell you how to do it. If there were a map, there'd be no art, because art is the act of navigating without a map. Don't you hate that? I love that there's no map.
I wanted to be Stan Laurel, then I wanted to be Fred Astaire and then Captain Kangaroo. I actually started out as a radio announcer when I was 17 and never left the business so that's literally 70 years.
Jazz comes from our way of life, and because it's our national art form, it helps us to understand who we are.
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