Fashion is transient, trends come and go. I believe in style, not fashion.
The dream is not a map. A poem is not the territory. The dreamer reclines in a barbershop carpeted with Afro turf. In the dark some soul yells. It hurts to walk barefoot on cowrie shells.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote emphasizes the distinction between abstract concepts and the tangible reality they represent.
In this quote, Harryette Mullen highlights that dreams and artistic expressions, such as poetry, are not strict representations of reality. Instead, they serve as personal interpretations that may evoke feelings or experiences, rather than providing a clear guide. The imagery of discomfort and vivid experiences suggests that engaging with art and dreams often involves navigating through complex sensations and emotions that are not always directly correlated with their source.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
This quote could be used in a discussion on the nature of art versus reality during a workshop.
Similar quotes
Thanks to art, instead of seeing one world only, our own, we see that world multiply itself and we have at our disposal as many worlds as there are original artists, worlds more different one from the other than those which revolve in infinite space, worlds which, centuries after the extinction of the fire from which their light first emanated, whether it is called Rembrandt or Vermeer, send us still each one its special radiance.
I shut my eyes in order to see.
Hail holy light, offspring of heav'n firstborn!
Poetry is the journal of a sea animal living on land, wanting to fly in the air.
Art is the fatal net which catches these strange moments on the wing like mysterious butterflies, fleeing the innocence and distraction of common men.