Hart Crane: “My Grandmother’s Love Letters”
My Grandmother’s Love Letters There are no stars tonight But those of memory. Yet how much room for memory there … Continue Reading Hart Crane: “My Grandmother’s Love Letters”
Mary Robinson’s Poem “A London Summer Morning”
After finishing To the House of the Sun, a poem mostly reliant on translations of ancient poetry (and in some … Continue Reading Mary Robinson’s Poem “A London Summer Morning”
“All I know is a door into the dark”: 2 Poems by Seamus Heaney
A young Seamus Heaney recalls a blacksmith from his boyhood, while a much older Seamus Heaney illustrates the sometimes excessive … Continue Reading “All I know is a door into the dark”: 2 Poems by Seamus Heaney
Walt Whitman, “A Sight in Camp in the Daybreak Gray and Dim”
Walt Whitman, early 1863, looking on the Civil War dead: A Sight in Camp in the Daybreak Gray and Dim … Continue Reading Walt Whitman, “A Sight in Camp in the Daybreak Gray and Dim”
The Poet Speaks #14: Kafka Tries Again & Again
Here are some bits from Kafka’s Diaries, trying & failing to harmonize his writing life with his family and work … Continue Reading The Poet Speaks #14: Kafka Tries Again & Again
The Poet Speaks #13: Richard Wilbur & John Berryman: “The artist is extremely lucky who is presented with the worst possible ordeal which will not actually kill him”
Even though I’ve never read a word of his poetry, John Berryman has been haunting me lately. Two friends who … Continue Reading The Poet Speaks #13: Richard Wilbur & John Berryman: “The artist is extremely lucky who is presented with the worst possible ordeal which will not actually kill him”
The Poet Speaks #12: Ralph Ellison, Anthony Burgess, James Dickey
If the Negro, or any other writer, is going to do what is expected of him, he’s lost the battle … Continue Reading The Poet Speaks #12: Ralph Ellison, Anthony Burgess, James Dickey
The Poet Speaks #11: George Eliot, Ernest Hemingway, Philip Levine, Stephen King, Seamus Heaney: “struggling erring human creatures”
George Eliot, on empathy: The greatest benefit we owe to the artist, whether painter, poet, or novelist, is the extension … Continue Reading The Poet Speaks #11: George Eliot, Ernest Hemingway, Philip Levine, Stephen King, Seamus Heaney: “struggling erring human creatures”
The Poet Speaks #9: Geoffrey Hill, Robert Frost, Allen Ginsberg, James Merrill, Ursula K. Le Guin: “We are difficult”
On the supposed “difficulty” of his poetry: We are difficult. Human beings are difficult. We’re difficult to ourselves, we’re difficult … Continue Reading The Poet Speaks #9: Geoffrey Hill, Robert Frost, Allen Ginsberg, James Merrill, Ursula K. Le Guin: “We are difficult”
The Poet Speaks #8: Patti Smith, Toni Morrison, T. S. Eliot, Hart Crane: “I shall make every sacrifice toward that end”
As even “nerd culture” and all the rest just becomes another snobby fad and pop culture corner to hide in, … Continue Reading The Poet Speaks #8: Patti Smith, Toni Morrison, T. S. Eliot, Hart Crane: “I shall make every sacrifice toward that end”
The Poet Speaks #7: Bronowski, Bloom, Munro, Gilbert, Trevor
On why he turned from more specialized to more popular writing on science and culture: Because of that [the use … Continue Reading The Poet Speaks #7: Bronowski, Bloom, Munro, Gilbert, Trevor
The Poet Speaks #6: Yeats & Blake
Some great quotes from W. B. Yeats and William Blake, chosen almost at random from two good biographies of them; … Continue Reading The Poet Speaks #6: Yeats & Blake
The Poet Speaks #5: Hughes, Auden, Hall, Pinsky, Collins
On why he wrote about animals so much: I suppose because they were there at the beginning. Like parents. Since … Continue Reading The Poet Speaks #5: Hughes, Auden, Hall, Pinsky, Collins
The Poet Speaks #4: O’Connor, Campbell, Merwin, Walcott, van Gogh
Flannery O’Connor responds to questions from academics and their students about her short stories: Week before last I went to … Continue Reading The Poet Speaks #4: O’Connor, Campbell, Merwin, Walcott, van Gogh
The Poet Speaks #3: Snodgrass, Beethoven, Hollander, Kunitz, Milosz
Advice to aspiring poets: If you can, get out. Everything else in the world pays better. Everything else in the … Continue Reading The Poet Speaks #3: Snodgrass, Beethoven, Hollander, Kunitz, Milosz
The Poet Speaks #2: Leonardo, Williams, Bishop, Meredith, Ashbery
Quotes from all over on art & creativity: [Leonardo] was always less concerned with the finishing of a picture than … Continue Reading The Poet Speaks #2: Leonardo, Williams, Bishop, Meredith, Ashbery
The Poet Speaks #1: Fitzgerald, Larkin, Paz, Lowell, Aiken
A new series of quotes from everywhere on writing and creativity: I was in the Navy, and I worked at … Continue Reading The Poet Speaks #1: Fitzgerald, Larkin, Paz, Lowell, Aiken
Tao Te Ching #81: “True words are not beautiful, beautiful words are not true”
True words are not beautiful, beautiful words are not true. The good are not argumentative, the argumentative are not good. … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #81: “True words are not beautiful, beautiful words are not true”
Tao Te Ching #80: “the people go back to simple techniques”
A small state has few people. It has the people keep arms but not use them. It has them regard … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #80: “the people go back to simple techniques”
Tao Te Ching #79: “Therefore sages keep their faith and do not pressure others”
When you harmonize bitter enemies, yet resentment is sure to linger, how can this be called good? Therefore sages keep … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #79: “Therefore sages keep their faith and do not pressure others”
Tao Te Ching #78: “So the flexible overcome the adamant, the yielding overcome the forceful”
Nothing in the world is more flexible and yielding than water. Yet when it attacks the firm and the strong, … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #78: “So the flexible overcome the adamant, the yielding overcome the forceful”
Tao Te Ching #77: “The Way of heaven reduces excess and fills need, but the way of humans is not so”
The Way of heaven is like drawing a bow: the high is lowered, the low is raised; excess is reduced, … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #77: “The Way of heaven reduces excess and fills need, but the way of humans is not so”
Tao Te Ching #76: “Let strength and might be put below, and tender, gentle in control”
When people are born they are supple, and when they die they are stiff. When trees are born they are … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #76: “Let strength and might be put below, and tender, gentle in control”
Tao Te Ching #75: “Only those who do not contrive to live are wise in valuing life”
When people are starving, it is because their governments take too much, causing them to starve. When people are hard … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #75: “Only those who do not contrive to live are wise in valuing life”
Tao Te Ching #74: “If people usually don’t fear death, how can death be used to scare them?”
If people usually don’t fear death, how can death be used to scare them? If people are made to fear … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #74: “If people usually don’t fear death, how can death be used to scare them?”
Tao Te Ching #73: “But which man knows what heaven condemns, what precedents it’s guided by?”
Boldness in daring means killing; boldness in not daring means life. These two may help and may harm. Who knows … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #73: “But which man knows what heaven condemns, what precedents it’s guided by?”
Tao Te Ching #72: “Don’t repress how people live”
When the people are not awed by authority, then great authority is attained. Their homes are not small to them, … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #72: “Don’t repress how people live”
Tao Te Ching #71: “To presume to know what you don’t is sick”
To know unconsciously is best. To presume to know what you don’t is sick. Only by recognizing the sickness of … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #71: “To presume to know what you don’t is sick”
Tao Te Ching #70: “And so we remain unknown”
My sayings are very easy to recognize, and very easy to apply. But no one in the world can recognize … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #70: “And so we remain unknown”
Tao Te Ching #69: “No fate is worse than to have no enemy”
There are sayings on the use of arms: “Let us not be aggressors, but defend.” “Let us not advance an … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #69: “No fate is worse than to have no enemy”
Tao Te Ching #68 “This is the virtue of nonaggression”
Good warriors do not arm, good fighters don’t get mad, good winners don’t contend, good employers serve their workers. This … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #68 “This is the virtue of nonaggression”
Tao Te Ching #67: “What Heaven creates let compassion protect”
Everyone in the world says my Way is great, but it seems incomparable. It is just because it is great … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #67: “What Heaven creates let compassion protect”
Tao Te Ching #66: Because they do not contend, no one in the world can contend with them”
The reason why rivers and seas can be lords of the hundred valleys is that they lower themselves to them … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #66: Because they do not contend, no one in the world can contend with them”
Tao Te Ching #65: “The ancient masters of the Way tried not to enlighten but to keep people in the dark”
In ancient times, good practitioners of the Way did not use it to enlighten the people, but to make them … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #65: “The ancient masters of the Way tried not to enlighten but to keep people in the dark”
Tao Te Ching #64: “The most massive tree grows from a sprout, the highest building rises from a pile of earth, a journey of a thousand miles begins with a step”
What is at rest is easy to hold. What has not shown up is easy to take into account. What … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #64: “The most massive tree grows from a sprout, the highest building rises from a pile of earth, a journey of a thousand miles begins with a step”
Tao Te Ching #63: “Do nondoing, strive for nonstriving, savor the flavorless, regard the small as important, make much of little, repay enmity with virtue”
Do nondoing, strive for nonstriving, savor the flavorless, regard the small as important, make much of little, repay enmity with … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #63: “Do nondoing, strive for nonstriving, savor the flavorless, regard the small as important, make much of little, repay enmity with virtue”
Tao Te Ching #62: “advancing calmly on this Way”
The Way is the pivot of all things: the treasure of good people, the safeguard of those who are not … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #62: “advancing calmly on this Way”
Tao Te Ching #61: “A great nation wants no more than to include and nurture people”
A great nation flows downward into intercourse with the world. The female of the world always prevails over the male … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #61: “A great nation wants no more than to include and nurture people”
Tao Te Ching #60: “Governing a large nation is like cooking little fish”
Governing a large nation is like cooking little fish. When the world is ruled by the Way, the ghosts are … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #60: “Governing a large nation is like cooking little fish”
Tao Te Ching #59: “The Way of extended life and sustained reflection”
To govern the human and serve the divine, nothing compares to frugality. Only frugality brings early recovery; early recovery means … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #59: “The Way of extended life and sustained reflection”
Tao Te Ching #58: “happiness rests in misery, misery hides in happiness”
When the government is unobtrusive, the people are pure. When the government is invasive, the people are wanting. Calamity is … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #58: “happiness rests in misery, misery hides in happiness”
Tao Te Ching #57: “the people simplify themselves”
Use straightforwardness for civil government, use surprise for military operations; use noninvolvement to take the world. How do I know … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #57: “the people simplify themselves”
Tao Te Ching #56: “Those who know do not say, those who say do not know”
Those who know do not say; those who say do not know. Close the senses, shut the doors; blunt the … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #56: “Those who know do not say, those who say do not know”
Tao Te Ching #55: “Knowing how to be balanced we endure, knowing how to endure we become wise”
The richness of subliminal virtue is comparable to an infant: poisonous creatures do not sting it, wild beasts do not … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #55: “Knowing how to be balanced we endure, knowing how to endure we become wise”
Tao Te Ching #54: “What you plant well can’t be uprooted, what you hold well can’t be taken away”
Good construction does not fall down, a good embrace does not let go; their heirs honor them unceasingly. Cultivate it … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #54: “What you plant well can’t be uprooted, what you hold well can’t be taken away”
Tao Te Ching #53: “The Great Way is quite even, yet people prefer byways”
Causing one flashes of knowledge to travel the Great Way, only its application demands care. The Great Way is quite … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #53: “The Great Way is quite even, yet people prefer byways”
Tao Te Ching #52: “Once you’ve found the mother, thereby you know the child”
The world has a beginning that is the mother of the world. Once you’ve found the mother, thereby you know … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #52: “Once you’ve found the mother, thereby you know the child”
Tao Te Ching #51: “this is called Dark Virtue”
The Way gives birth, virtue nurtures, things form, momentum completes. Therefore all beings honor the Way and value its Virtue. … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #51: “this is called Dark Virtue”
Tao Te Ching #50: “for them there’s no land of death”
Exiting life, we enter death. The followers of life are three out of ten; in the lives of the people, … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #50: “for them there’s no land of death”
Tao Te Ching #49: “Sages have no fixed mind, they make the minds of the people their mind”
Sages have no fixed mind; they make the minds of the people their mind: they improve the good, and also … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #49: “Sages have no fixed mind, they make the minds of the people their mind”
Tao Te Ching #48: “To pursue learning, learn more day by day, to pursue the Way, unlearn it day by day”
For learning you gain daily; for the Way you lose daily. Losing and losing, thus you reach noncontrivance; be uncontrived, … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #48: “To pursue learning, learn more day by day, to pursue the Way, unlearn it day by day”
Tao Te Ching #47: “Without going out your door you can know the whole world”
They know the world without even going out the door. They see the sky and its pattern without even looking … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #47: “Without going out your door you can know the whole world”
Tao Te Ching #46: “No crime is greater than approving of greed”
When the world has the Way, running horses are retired to till the fields. When the world lacks the Way, … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #46: “No crime is greater than approving of greed”
Tao Te Ching #45: “Clear stillness is right for the world”
Great completeness seems incomplete; its use is never exhausted. Great fullness seems empty; its use is never ended. Great directness … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #45: “Clear stillness is right for the world”
Tao Te Ching #44: “Extreme fondness means great expense, and abundant possessions mean much loss”
Which is closer, your name or your body? Which is more, your body or your possessions? Which is more destructive, … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #44: “Extreme fondness means great expense, and abundant possessions mean much loss”
Tao Te Ching #43: “In this world below the sky the gentle will outdo the strong”
What is softest in the world drives what is hardest in the world. Nonbeing enters where there is no room; … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #43: “In this world below the sky the gentle will outdo the strong”
Tao Te Ching #42: “Those who take less shall have more, Those given more shall have less”
The Way produces one; one produces two, two produces three, three produces all beings: all beings bear yin and embrace … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #42: “Those who take less shall have more, Those given more shall have less”
Tao Te Ching #41: “If they didn’t laugh at it, it wouldn’t be the Way”
When superior people hear of the Way, they carry it out with diligence. When middling people hear of the Way, … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #41: “If they didn’t laugh at it, it wouldn’t be the Way”
Tao Te Ching #40: “The Tao moves the other way, the Tao works through weakness”
Return is the movement of the Way; yielding is the function of the Way. All things in the world are … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #40: “The Tao moves the other way, the Tao works through weakness”
Tao Te Ching #39: “Attaining unity”
When unity was attained of old, heaven became clear by attaining unity, earth became steady by attaining unity, spirit was … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #39: “Attaining unity”
Tao Te Ching #38: “Virtue comes after loss of the Way”
Higher virtue is not ingratiating; that is why it has virtue. Lower virtue does not forget about reward; that is … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #38: “Virtue comes after loss of the Way”
Tao Te Ching #37: “By not wanting, there is calm, and the world will straighten itself”
The Way is always uncontrived, yet there’s nothing it doesn’t do. If lords and monarchs could keep to it, all … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #37: “By not wanting, there is calm, and the world will straighten itself”
Tao Te Ching #36: “Flexibility and yielding overcome adamant coerciveness”
Should you want to contain something, you must deliberately let it expand. Should you want to weaken something, you must … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #36: “Flexibility and yielding overcome adamant coerciveness”
Tao Te Ching #35: “the Tao speaks plain words that make no sense … yet we use it without end”
When holding the Great Image, the world goes on and on without harm, peaceful, even tranquil. Where there is music … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #35: “the Tao speaks plain words that make no sense … yet we use it without end”
Tao Te Ching #34: “Therefore sages never contrive greatness; that is why they can become so great.”
The Great Way is universal; it can apply to the left or the right. All beings depend on it for … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #34: “Therefore sages never contrive greatness; that is why they can become so great.”
Tao Te Ching #33: “Those who know others are wise; those who know themselves are enlightened.”
Those who know others are wise; those who know themselves are enlightened. Those who overcome others are powerful; those who … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #33: “Those who know others are wise; those who know themselves are enlightened.”
Tao Te Ching #32: “The Way is essentially nameless”
The Way is essentially nameless. Though simplicity is small, the world cannot subordinate it. If lords and monarchs can keep … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #32: “The Way is essentially nameless”
Tao Te Ching #31: “Weapons are the tools of violence; all decent men detest them”
Fine weapons are implements of ill omen: people may despise them, so those with the Way do not dwell with … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #31: “Weapons are the tools of violence; all decent men detest them”
Tao Te Ching #30: “do not coerce the world with weapons”
Those who assist human leadership with the Way do not coerce the world with weapons, for these things are apt … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #30: “do not coerce the world with weapons”
Tao Te Ching #29: “Should you want to take this world”
Should you want to take this world, and contrive to do so, I see you won’t manage to finish. The … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #29: “Should you want to take this world”
Tao Te Ching #28: “Know the male, keep the female”
Know the male, keep the female; be humble toward the world. But humble to the world, and eternal power never … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #28: “Know the male, keep the female”
Tao Te Ching #27: “Good works are trackless”
“Good works are trackless” Good works are trackless, good words are flawless, good planning isn’t calculating. What is well closed … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #27: “Good works are trackless”
Tao Te Ching #26: “Gravity is the root of lightness”
Gravity is the root of lightness; calm is the master of excitement. Thereby do exemplary people travel all day without … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #26: “Gravity is the root of lightness”
Tao Te Ching #25: “Something undifferentiated was born before heaven and earth”
Something undifferentiated was born before heaven and earth; still and silent, standing alone and unchanging, going through cycles unending, able … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #25: “Something undifferentiated was born before heaven and earth”
Tao Te Ching #24: “Those on tiptoe don’t stand up”
Those on tiptoe don’t stand up, those who take long strides don’t walk; those who see themselves are not perceptive, … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #24: “Those on tiptoe don’t stand up”
Tao Te Ching #23: “To speak rarely is natural”
To speak rarely is natural. That is why a gusty wind doesn’t last the morning, a downpour of rain doesn’t … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #23: “To speak rarely is natural”
Tao Te Ching #22: “Be tactful and you remain whole”
Be tactful and you remain whole; bend and you remain straight. The hollow is filled, the old is renewed. Economy … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #22: “Be tactful and you remain whole”
Tao Te Ching #21: “For the countenance of great virtue”
For the countenance of great virtue, only the Way is to be followed. As a thing, the Way is abstract … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #21: “For the countenance of great virtue”
Tao Te Ching #20: “Detach from learning and you have no worries”
Detach from learning and you have no worries. How far apart are yes and yeah? How far apart are good … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #20: “Detach from learning and you have no worries”
Tao Te Ching #19: “Eliminate sagacity, abandon knowledge”
Eliminate sagacity, abandon knowledge, and the people benefit a hundredfold. Eliminate humanitarianism, abandon duty, and the people return to familial … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #19: “Eliminate sagacity, abandon knowledge”
Tao Te Ching #18: “When the Great Way is deserted”
When the Great Way is deserted, then there is humanitarian duty. When intelligence comes forth, there is great fabrication. When … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #18: “When the Great Way is deserted”
Tao Te Ching #17: “Very great leaders in their domains”
Very great leaders in their domains are only known to exist. Those next best are beloved and praised. The lesser … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #17: “Very great leaders in their domains”
Tao Te Ching #16: “Attain the climax of emptiness”
Attain the climax of emptiness, preserve the utmost quiet: as myriad things act in concert, I thereby observe the return. … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #16: “Attain the climax of emptiness”
Tao Te Ching #15: “Skilled warriors of old were subtle”
Skilled warriors of old were subtle, mysteriously powerful, so deep they were unknowable. Just because they are unknowable, I will … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #15: “Skilled warriors of old were subtle”
Tao Te Ching #14: “What you don’t see when you look”
What you don’t see when you look is called the unobtrusive. What you don’t hear when you listen is called … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #14: “What you don’t see when you look”
Tao Te Ching #13: “Favor and disgrace seem alarming”
Favor and disgrace seem alarming; high status greatly afflicts your person. What are favor and disgrace? Favor is the lower: … Continue Reading Tao Te Ching #13: “Favor and disgrace seem alarming”
Don’t Be Such a Boar
After receiving an email from a reader interested in the mythology surrounding bears, I remembered my own obsession with the … Continue Reading Don’t Be Such a Boar
Daniel Paul Marshall (6 Poems)
I would encourage anyone with an interest in poetry to check out the work of Daniel Paul Marshall. He has … Continue Reading Daniel Paul Marshall (6 Poems)
The State of Poetry … in 1993
The following essay was published in the New Criterion in February, 1993, and reflects a view of American poetry from … Continue Reading The State of Poetry … in 1993
Rig Veda
In another life (appropriately enough), I would have been Hindu; in an additional other life, at the very least I … Continue Reading Rig Veda
Allen Ginsberg, “Kaddish”
I’d like to say that after Four Quartets, I don’t know of another long poem from the last century that’s … Continue Reading Allen Ginsberg, “Kaddish”
Whitman Last
It has always seemed significant to me that, at the beginning of the first and the end of the last … Continue Reading Whitman Last
Whitman First
It has always seemed significant to me that, at the beginning of the first and the end of the last … Continue Reading Whitman First
T. S. Eliot on Dante
Is there anything better than T. S. Eliot talking about his debt to Dante? Here is the majority of his … Continue Reading T. S. Eliot on Dante
Wallace Stevens, Intergalactic Planetary
Here are some bits on writing, nature, and anonymous everyday life from Wallace Stevens, that quiet murmur of American poetry … Continue Reading Wallace Stevens, Intergalactic Planetary
Yeats & Lady Gregory
(photo from the LG/WBY Heritage Trail) In the single-volume Autobiographies of W. B. Yeats, which collects all of Yeats’s autobiographical … Continue Reading Yeats & Lady Gregory
Classic Joyce
Too much to choose from, but here’s some classic bits from James Joyce that are always worth keeping in mind: … Continue Reading Classic Joyce
Jean Guéhenno (Favorite Passages)
Diary of the Dark Years, 1940-1944: Collaboration, Resistance, and Daily Life in Occupied Paris, by Jean Guéhenno Guéhenno bio A … Continue Reading Jean Guéhenno (Favorite Passages)
What Eliot Means to Me
(for Eliot’s essay “What Dante Means to Me,” go here) I. Late in life, T. S. Eliot hoped the essays … Continue Reading What Eliot Means to Me
