All music is is what awakes from you when you are reminded by the instruments.
Walt WhitmanRead
The dirtiest book of all is the expurgated book.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Censorship distorts true expression and undermines the value of literature.
Walt Whitman's quote suggests that the most corrupt form of a literary work is not the original, unedited version, but rather the sanitized version that has been altered to remove controversial or explicit content. By removing certain elements, the depth and authenticity of the work are compromised, leading to a distorted representation of the author's true intentions. This serves as a commentary on the importance of freedom of expression and the dangers of censorship in art and literature.
Themes
CensorshipLiteratureFreedomExpressionAuthenticity
In practice
Example use cases
Discussing the importance of unedited literature in a book club.
More from Walt Whitman
All quotes βDid you, too, O friend, suppose democracy was only for elections, for politics, and for a party name? I say democracy is only of use there that it may pass on and come to its flower and fruit in manners, in the highest forms of interaction between people, and their beliefs - in religion, literature, colleges and schools- democracy in all public and private life.
Walt WhitmanRead
In the confusion we stay with each other, happy to be together, speaking without uttering a single word.
Walt WhitmanRead
A morning-glory at my window satisfies me more than the metaphysics of books.
Walt WhitmanRead
Now, dearest comrade, lift me to your face,_x000D_ _x000D_ We must separate awhileHere! take from my lips this kiss._x000D_ _x000D_ Whoever you are, I give it especially to you;_x000D_ _x000D_ So long!And I hope we shall meet again.
Walt WhitmanRead
And whoever walks a furlong without sympathy walks to his own funeral drest in his shroud.
Walt WhitmanRead
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The way to read a fairy tale is to throw yourself in.
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We did meet forty years ago. At that time we were both influenced by Whitman and I said, jokingly in part, 'I don't think anything can be done in Spanish, do you?' Neruda agreed, but we decided it was too late for us to write our verse in English. We'd have to make the best of a second-rate literature.
Jorge Luis BorgesRead
I believe that all novels, ... deal with character, and that it is to express character β not to preach doctrines, sing songs, or celebrate the glories of the British Empire, that the form of the novel, so clumsy, verbose, and undramatic, so rich, elastic, and alive, has been evolved ... The great novelists have brought us to see whatever they wish us to see through some character. Otherwise they would not be novelists, but poet, historians, or pamphleteers.
Ursula K. Le GuinRead