What I wanted to do was to get that sense of being in touch with this lost world while holding onto what draws readers and audiences there in the first place.
Stephen GreenblattRead
I've been at this for 40 years. And, as an academic, I've been content with relatively small audiences, with the thought that the audience I long for will find its way eventually to what I have written, provided that what I have written is good enough.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote emphasizes the importance of quality over quantity in academic work. It suggests that worthwhile contributions will eventually reach the right audience.
Stephen Greenblatt reflects on his decades of academic work, articulating a belief in the eventual discovery of valuable ideas by the appropriate audience. He highlights a sense of patience and dedication, trusting that commitment to quality in writing will ultimately attract those who appreciate it, regardless of the immediate size of one's audience.
Themes
AcademicAudienceWritingQualityDedication
In practice
Example use cases
During a conference on educational philosophy, one might quote this to stress the importance of focusing on quality work rather than the size of the audience.
More from Stephen Greenblatt
All quotes βWhat matters here are the works - finally without them his life would be uninteresting. What matters, that is, are the astonishing things that he left behind. If we can get the life in relation to the works, then it can take off.
Stephen GreenblattRead
The exercise of reason is not available only to specialists; it is accessible to everyone.
Stephen GreenblattRead
Compared to the unleashed forces of warfare and of faith, Mount Vesuvius was kinder to the legacy of antiquity.
Stephen GreenblattRead
The greatest obstacle to pleasure is not pain; it is delusion.
Stephen GreenblattRead
I believe in broken, fractured, complicated narratives, but I believe in narratives as a vehicle for truth, not simply as a form of entertainment, though I love entertainment, but also a way of conveying what needs to be conveyed about the works that I care about.
Stephen GreenblattRead
Similar quotes
I like books that aren't just lovely but that have memories in themselves. Just like playing a song, picking up a book again that has memories can take you back to another place or another time.
Emma WatsonRead
He had been so busy getting away from the library, he hadn't paid attention to where he was going.
J. K. RowlingRead
My mother would have enjoyed the idea that her name was being used to build bridges. She cared a great deal and was very thoughtful and passionate about education and young women.
Maya Soetoro-NgRead
If you're not ready to fail, you're not going to learn how to cook.
Julia ChildRead
Good teaching is forever being on the cutting edge of a child's competence.
Jerome BrunerRead
Reading a book is like re-writing it for yourself.
Angela CarterRead