If you have the guts to be yourself, other people'll pay your price.
John UpdikeRead
My attempt has been really to, beyond making a record of contemporary life, which is what you inevitably do, is trying to make beautiful books - books that are in some way beautiful, that are models of how to use the language, models of honest feeling, models of care.
Interpretation
What this quote means
John Updike emphasizes the importance of beauty and care in writing, aiming to create works that reflect honest emotions and the richness of contemporary life.
In this quote, John Updike reflects on his literary ambitions, where he seeks to create books that not only document contemporary life but also exemplify beauty, emotion, and the art of language. He believes that writing should be a model for how to express genuine feelings and the careful craftsmanship involved in literature, highlighting the importance of aesthetics in the narrative.
Themes
WritingArtBeautyLanguageEmotion
In practice
Example use cases
This quote could be used in a discussion about the importance of literary aesthetics in a writing workshop.
More from John Updike
All quotes →Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that's the stuff life is made of. _x000D_ _x000D_ Suspect each moment, for it is a thief, tiptoeing away with more than it brings.
John UpdikeRead
Museums and bookstores should feel, I think, like vacant lots - places where the demands on us are our own demands, where the spirit can find exercise in unsupervised play.
John UpdikeRead
But it is just two lovers, holding hands and in a hurry to reach their car, their locked hands a starfish leaping through the dark.
John UpdikeRead
The reader knows the writer better than he knows himself; but the writer's physical presence is light from a star that has moved on.
John UpdikeRead
To guarantee the individual maximum freedom within a social frame of minimal laws ensures - if not happiness - its hopeful pursuit.
John UpdikeRead
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