QuoteProject
The number of people writing poems is vast, and their reasons for doing so are many, that much can be surmised from the stacks of submissions.
Mark Strand
ShareWTF𝕏

Interpretation

What this quote means

Many people write poetry for various reasons, illustrating the diverse nature of poetic expression.

Mark Strand reflects on the vast number of individuals engaged in writing poetry, suggesting that their motivations are equally numerous and complex. This observation highlights the richness and diversity of poetic expression within society, as every poet brings their unique voice and purpose to their creations, contributing to the broader tapestry of literature.

Themes

PoetryExpressionMotivationDiversity

In practice

Example use cases

In a poetry workshop, to encourage participants to explore their reasons for writing, you might say this quote to inspire conversation.

More from Mark Strand

And at least in poetry you should feel free to lie. That is, not to lie, but to imagine what you want, to follow the direction of the poem.
Mark StrandRead
...In another time, What cannot be seen will define us, and we shall be prompted To say that language is error, and all things are wronged By representation. The self, we shall say, can never be Seen with a disguise, and never be seen without one.
Mark StrandRead
Even this late it happens the coming of love, the coming of light. You wake and the candles are lit as if by themselves, stars gather, dreams pour into your pillows, sending up warm bouquets of air. Even this late the bones of the body shine and tomorrow’s dust flares into breath.
Mark StrandRead
No voice comes from outer space, from the folds of dust and carpets of wind to tell us that this is the way it was meant to happen, that if only we knew how long the ruins would last we would never complain.
Mark StrandRead
From the shadow of domes in the city of domes,_x000D_ A snowflake, a blizzard of one, weightless, entered your room_x000D_ And made its way to the arm of the chair where you, looking up_x000D_ From your book, saw it the moment it landed. That's all_x000D_ There was to it.
Mark StrandRead
There's a certain point, when you're writing autobiographical stuff, where you don't want to misrepresent yourself. It would be dishonest.
Mark StrandRead

Similar quotes

I haven't stopped painting or drawing - I've just added another medium.
David HockneyRead
A photographer must always work with the greatest respect for his subject and in terms of his own point of view.
Henri Cartier-BressonRead
You like it, that's all, whether it's a landscape or abstract. You like it. It hits you. You don't have to read it. The work of art-sculpture or painting-forces your eye.
Clement GreenbergRead
I think of myself as a stylist, and stylists can become notoriously obsessed with the placing of a comma, the weight of a semicolon.
Truman CapoteRead
They swayed about upon a rocking horse, And thought it Pegasus.
John KeatsRead
This diary is my kief, hashish and opium pipe. This is my drug and my vice.
Anais NinRead

A little wisdom, now and then

Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.