There are times in life when, instead of complaining, you do something about your complaints.
Rita DoveRead
I make a discovery in a poem as I write it.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The process of creating poetry is often a journey of personal discovery for the poet.
Rita Dove's quote highlights the inherent relationship between writing poetry and self-discovery. As a poet engages with their craft, they often uncover new insights, emotions, and understandings about themselves and the world around them, suggesting that the act of writing is not only about creation but also about exploration and revelation.
Themes
PoetryDiscoveryCreative ProcessSelf-ExplorationArt
In practice
Example use cases
In a poetry workshop, I shared Dove's quote to inspire participants to embrace the unknown journey of creation.
More from Rita Dove
All quotes →Without imagination we can go nowhere. And imagination is not restricted to the arts. Every scientist I have met who has been a success has had to imagine.
Rita DoveRead
As an African-American, as a woman, I think that I've been sensitized to the way in which history privileges the white male and the way in which certain aspects of history, the things that we are taught in school, the things that are handed down, never, never entered the picture though they might have been very important.
Rita DoveRead
If our children are unable to voice what they mean, no one will know how they feel. If they can’t imagine a different world, they are stumbling through a darkness made all the more sinister by its lack of reference points. For a young person growing up in America’s alienated neighborhoods, there can be no greater empowerment than to dare to speak from the heart — and then to discover that one is not alone in ones feelings.
Rita DoveRead
All of us have moments in our childhood where we come alive for the first time. And we go back to those moments and think, This is when I became myself.
Rita DoveRead
Being Poet Laureate made me realize I was capable of a larger voice. There is a more public utterance I can make as a poet.
Rita DoveRead
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I would have to think about it for two or three months before I decided to do something which would have meaning. And it would have to be more than just an impression or pleasure. I would need an objective, a meaning. That is the only thing that could help me.
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A person who's only suffering can't write a poem. There are choices to be made, and you need to be objective.
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