Anyone with gumption and a sharp mind will take the measure of two things: what's said and what's done.
Manifesting that order of poetry where we can at last grow up to that which we stored up as we grew.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects on the journey of personal growth and the realization of one's potential through creativity and expression.
Seamus Heaney's quote speaks to the transformative power of poetry and art, suggesting that as we mature, we are able to access and embody the rich experiences and aspirations we have accumulated over time. It highlights the connection between the creative process and self-discovery, emphasizing that through the act of creation, we can come to terms with our past and achieve a deeper understanding of ourselves.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about creativity, one might reference this quote to highlight the importance of personal growth through artistic endeavors.
More from Seamus Heaney
All quotes βWhat I've said before, only half in joke, is that everybody in Ireland is famous. Or, maybe better, say everybody is familiar.
The kinds of truth that art gives us many, many times are small truths. They don't have the resonance of an encyclical from the Pope stating an eternal truth, but they partake of the quality of eternity. There is a sort of timeless delight in them.
If self is a location, so is love: Bearings taken, markings, cardinal points, Options, obstinacies, dug heels, and distance, Here and there and now and then, a stance.
In my early teens, I acquired a kind of representative status: went on behalf of the family to wakes and funerals and so on. And I would be counted on as an adult contributor when it came to farm work - the hay in the summertime, for example.
I think that water is immediately interesting. It's just, as an element, it is full of life. It is associated with origin; it is bright - it reflects you.
Similar quotes
All of the films that I've made are about the country I live in and grew up in... And I think if you're going to put an artist's eye to it, you're going to put a critical eye to it. I've always been interested in the gray area that exists between the black and white, or the red and blue, and that's where complexity lies.
A writer should not run around with a mirror for his countrymen; he should tell his society and his times things no one ever thought before.
One has to draw upon one's own musical thoughts and one's own musical acumen, and not to be afraid to let that come into one's work. Perhaps that comes with more experience, but perhaps it also comes with daring, and believing that you should.
I was never interested in looking at myself in an aesthetic mirror. My intention was always to get away from myself, though I knew perfectly well that I was using myself. Call it a little game between 'I' and 'me.'
A writer, I think, is someone who pays attention to the world.
What provides you with subject matter is your own language - and that's all.