Writing a book of poetry is like dropping a rose petal down the Grand Canyon and waiting for the echo.
Interpretation
This quote compares writing poetry to a delicate act that produces a subtle and distant response.
Don Marquis uses the imagery of dropping a rose petal into the Grand Canyon as a metaphor for writing poetry. It highlights the fleeting nature of poetry and how the impact of one's words may not be immediately felt or recognized, much like the quiet echo that follows the fall of a delicate petal in a vast space. This suggests that poetry carries deep beauty but its significance may only resonate over time, akin to how art can evoke feelings long after it's created.
In practice
This quote can be shared during a poetry reading to emphasize the quiet power of poetry.
From 'the lesson of the moth': and before i could argue him out of his philosophy he went and immolated himself on a patent cigar lighter i do not agree with him myself i would rather have half the happiness and twice the longevity but at the same time i wish there was something i wanted as badly as he wanted to fry himself
When a man tells you that he got rich through hard work, ask him: 'Whose?'
it is better to be a part of beauty for one instant and then cease to exist than to exist forever and never be a part of beauty
A musician is a professional, whether he or she is successful or not. The profession itself must be regarded as a stable job.
There are two moments worthwhile in writing, the one when you start and the other when you throw it in the waste-paper basket.
Tango is about feeling and sensitivity, otherwise you are just doing gymnastics. You can do all the steps but it has to have the feeling and sensitivity of authentic tango.
music heard so deeply That it is not heard at all, but you are the music While the music lasts.
But no artist, I now realize, can be satisfied with art alone. There is a natural craving for recognition which cannot be gain-said.
You can study orchestration, you can study harmony and theory and everything else, but melodies come straight from God.
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