Blow the candle out, I don't need to see what my thoughts look like.
Emile ZolaRead
There are two men inside the artist, the poet and the craftsman. One is born a poet. One becomes a craftsman.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote highlights the dual nature of an artist, combining innate creativity with learned skills.
Emile Zola's quote illustrates the dichotomy within the identity of an artist, emphasizing that while some aspects of artistry come naturally, like poetic inspiration, other facets, such as technical skill and craftsmanship, are developed through practice and dedication. This suggests that being an artist requires both inherent talent and the commitment to hone one's abilities.
Themes
ArtistPoetCraftsmanCreativitySkill
In practice
Example use cases
Using this quote in a discussion about the nature of art and talent.
More from Emile Zola
All quotes βI believe that all is illusion and vanity outside the treasure of truths slowly accumulated, and which will never again be lost. I believe that the sum of these truths, always increasing, will at last confer on man incalculable power and peace, if not happiness. Yes, I believe in the final triumph of life.
Emile ZolaRead
A ruined man fell from her hands like a ripe fruit, to lie rotting on the ground.
Emile ZolaRead
Oh, the fools, like a lot of good little schoolboys, scared to death of anything they've been taught is wrong!
Emile ZolaRead
Did not one spend the first half of one's days in dreams of happiness and the second half in regrets and terrors?
Emile ZolaRead
They dared not peer down into their own natures, down into the feverish confusion that filled their minds with a kind of dense, acrid mist.
Emile ZolaRead
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You know, Hitler wanted to be an artist. At eighteen he took his inheritance, seven hundred kronen, and moved to Vienna to live and study... Ever see one of his paintings? Neither have I. Resistance beat him. Call it overstatement but I'll say it anyway: it was easier for Hitler to start World War II than it was for him to face a blank square of canvas.
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