I can never drive my car over a bridge without thinking of suicide. I can never look at a lake or an ocean without thinking of suicide.
Charles BukowskiRead
An intellectual says a simple thing in a hard way. An artist says a hard thing in a simple way.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Intellectuals often complicate simple ideas, while artists simplify complex concepts.
This quote by Charles Bukowski highlights the contrast between the ways intellectuals and artists communicate. Intellectuals tend to use complicated language and convoluted explanations to express simple ideas, making them difficult to grasp, while artists have the ability to distill complex thoughts into accessible forms that resonate deeply with people, illustrating the power of creativity in conveying meaning.
Themes
IntellectualArtistSimplicityComplexityCommunication
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about creativity, one could use this quote to illustrate the role of artists in making profound ideas accessible.
More from Charles Bukowski
All quotes →when I am feeling low all i have to do is watch my cats and my courage returns
Charles BukowskiRead
The masses are always wrong...Wisdom is doing everything the crowd does not do. All you do is reverse the totality of their learning and you have the heaven they're looking for.
Charles BukowskiRead
I'm going to open another vottle. not a vottle, but a bottle. you open it and I'll drink it. and you try to write as much as I did without falling off of your chair.
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To experience real agony is something hard to write about, impossible to understand while it grips you; you're frightened out of your wits, can’t sit still, move, or even go decently insane.
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I lapsed into my pathetic cut-off period. Often with humans, both good and bad, my senses simply shut off, they get tired, I give up. I am polite. I nod. I pretend to understand because I don’t want anybody to be hurt. That is the one weakness that has lead me into the most trouble. Trying to be kind to others I often get my soul shredded into a kind of spiritual pasta. No matter. My brain shuts off. I listen. I respond. And they are too dumb to know that I am not there.
Charles BukowskiRead
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