Great works of art have no more affecting lesson for us than this. They teach us to abide by our own spontaneous expression with good humored inflexibility whether the whole cry of voices is on the other side.
Interpretation
Art encourages us to stay true to our genuine selves despite external pressures.
In this quote, Ralph Waldo Emerson emphasizes the importance of authenticity and self-expression in art. He suggests that true masterpieces not only inspire us but also teach us the necessity of remaining steadfast in our unique perspectives, even when faced with opposition from societal norms or popular opinion. This idea underlines the value of individualism and the courage required to uphold one's beliefs and creativity in the face of adversity.
In practice
During an art exhibition, one could use this quote to highlight the importance of individual expression in artistic works.
It is plain that there is no separate essence called courage, no cup or cell in the brain, no vessel in the heart containing drops or atoms that make or give this virtue; but it is the right or healthy state of every man, when he is free to do that which is constitutional to him to do.
Few people have any next, they live from hand to mouth without a plan, and are always at the end of their line.
Men cease to interest us when we find their limitations
Tis the good reader that makes the good book; a good head cannot read amiss: in every book he finds passages which seem confidences or asides hidden from all else and unmistakeably meant for his ear.
The world belongs to the energetic.
Hast thou named all the birds without a gun?
I love this quote uttered by the character Widget in The Night Circus. He credits it to Herr Thiessen but knows it is a literary quote by the another author. "Wine is bottled poetry
Poiret made clothes for individual customers, but I wouldn't like to make a dress just for its own sake.
We need to bring music to the people, even to those who normally do not listen to classical music.
There is a lot of propaganda about opera singers not being able to act. That's not necessarily true and hasn't been true for a very long time. And certainly there were those instances when singers were told they need to fit into a certain size dress. Of course, women. Men? They just make the costume bigger.
Creativity is putting your imagination to work, and it's produced the most extraordinary results in human culture.
Sure, they were simple desk lamps with only a minimal amount of movement, but you could immediately tell that Luxo Jr. was a baby, and that the big one was his mother. In that short little film, computer animation went from a novelty to a serious tool for filmmaking.
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