A recurring ideal, I find, is that of simplicity. At times there comes the desire to write with great precision and clarity, words so simple and moving that they bring tears to the eyes.
Interpretation
Simplicity in writing can evoke deep emotions and clarity.
In this quote, R. S. Thomas emphasizes the power of simplicity in writing. He suggests that the desire for clear and precise expression can lead to the creation of words so simple yet profound that they resonate deeply with readers, often evoking strong emotional responses such as tears.
In practice
This quote can be used in a workshop on creative writing to encourage participants to embrace simplicity.
The furies are at home in the mirror; it is their address. Even the clearest water, if deep enough can drown. Never think to surprise them. Your face approaching ever so friendly is the white flag they ignore. There is no truce with the furies. A mirror's temperature is always zero. It is ice in the veins. It's camera is an x-ray. It is a chalice held out to you in silent communion, where gaspingly you partake of a shifting identity never your own.
Imaginative truth is the most immediate way of presenting ultimate reality to a human being... ultimate reality is what we call God.
Man is a dream about a shadow. But when some splendour falls upon him from God, a glory comes to him and his life is sweet.
Poetry is that / which arrives at the intellect / by way of the heart.
You have an absolute freedom in Mexican writing today in which you don't necessarily have to deal with the Mexican identity. You know why? Because we have an identity... We know who we are. We know what it means to be a Mexican.
No art is less spontaneous than mine. What I do is the result of reflection and the study of the great masters.
Some of us are born with a weakness for music. As a baby, music would stop whatever thought I was having. If I was worried, it would stop me worrying; if I was crying, it would stop me crying. Music was a healing thing for me.
Reverence is fatal to literature.
People are already finding ways to make their music and play it in front of people and have a life in music, I guess, and I think that's pretty much all you can ask.
Artists are mystics rather than rationalists. They leap to conclusions that logic cannot reach.
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