The writer is the person who stands outside society, independent of affiliation and independent of influence.
Don DelilloRead
One truth is the swing of the sentence, the beat and poise, but down deeper it's the integrity of the writer as he matches with the language.
Interpretation
The essence of writing lies in the balance of language and the writer's integrity.
Don DeLillo emphasizes that effective writing is not just about the superficial elegance of sentences but is rooted in the deeper integrity of the writer. Genuine writing resonates when the author skillfully aligns their true self with the language they employ, creating a harmonious interplay that captivates readers.
In practice
In a writing workshop, when discussing the importance of authenticity in personal narratives.
The writer is the person who stands outside society, independent of affiliation and independent of influence.
War is the form nostalgia takes when men are hard-pressed to say something good about their country.
American writers ought to stand and live in the margins, and be more dangerous.
For me, writing is a concentrated form of thinking.
I used to think it was possible for an artist to alter the inner life of the culture. Now bomb-makers and gunmen have taken that territory.
[I]n the American soul there is a lonely individual standing in a vast landscape. He is either on a horse or driving a car, depending, and either way he’s carrying a gun. This is one of the essential images in American mythology.
For the creation of a masterwork of literature two powers must concur, the power of the man and the power of the moment, and the man is not enough without the moment.
Honestly, I am so ignorant of how dance works that I can't even imagine a story that you would want to tell through movement.
It's true that none of my characters are admirable. But maybe I'm primarily a satirist, and a satirist needs to hold up what's not admirable.
The only important elements in any society are the artistic and the criminal, because they alone, by questioning the society’s values, can force it to change.
Writers, you know, are the beggars of Western society.
The play is done; the curtain drops,_x000D_ _x000D_ Slow falling to the prompter's bell_x000D_ _x000D_ A moment yet the actor stops_x000D_ _x000D_ And looks around to say farewell.
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