If a poet interprets a poem of his own he limits its suggestibility.
William Butler YeatsRead
Books are but waste paper unless we spend in action the wisdom we get from thought - asleep. When we are weary of the living, we may repair to the dead, who have nothing of peevishness, pride, or design in their conversation.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Books hold value only when their wisdom is acted upon; engaging with the dead offers untroubled interaction.
William Butler Yeats emphasizes the importance of not just reading and acquiring knowledge from books, but also applying that wisdom through action. He also suggests that engaging with the dead through literature can provide a form of solace, free from the complexities of human traits like pride or irritation.
Themes
WisdomBooksKnowledgeActionLiteratureEngagement
In practice
Example use cases
During a book club meeting to discuss the importance of applying insights from reading.
More from William Butler Yeats
All quotes →It was my first meeting with a philosophy that confirmed my vague speculations and seemed at once logical and boundless.
William Butler YeatsRead
But I, being poor, have only my dreams; I have spread my dreams under your feet; Tread softly because you tread on my dreams.
William Butler YeatsRead
How far away the stars seem, and how far is our first kiss, and ah, how old my heart.
William Butler YeatsRead
For he would be thinking of love Till the stars had run away And the shadows eaten the moon.
William Butler YeatsRead
Love is created and preserved by intellectual analysis, for we love only that which is unique, and it belongs to contemplation, not to action, for we would not change that which we love.
William Butler YeatsRead
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