Forms disappear, words remain, to signify the impossible.
Augusto Roa BastosRead
There were epochs in the history of humanity in which the writer was a sacred person. He wrote the sacred books, universal books, the codes, the epic, the oracles. Sentences inscribed on the walls of the crypts; examples in the portals of the temples. But in those times the writer was not an individual alone; he was the people.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote reflects on the profound role of writers in history as voices of the collective consciousness of humanity.
Augusto Roa Bastos emphasizes the significant impact writers have had throughout human history, portraying them not merely as individual creators but as representatives of the broader society. In earlier epochs, writers contributed to sacred texts and communal knowledge, functioning as the custodians of cultural and moral codes, and their words were seen as an embodiment of the people’s spirit and values.
Themes
WriterHistorySacredCultureCollective Consciousness
In practice
Example use cases
During a literary conference, one might use this quote to discuss the historical significance of writers.
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