To have opinions is to sell out to youself. To have no opinions is to exist. To have every opinion is to be a poet.
Interpretation
The quote suggests that having opinions can lead to a loss of authenticity, while being devoid of them signifies mere existence. Embracing a multitude of opinions is an artistic expression akin to being a poet.
Fernando Pessoa's quote reflects on the nature of opinions and existence. It posits that having fixed opinions can be seen as a form of self-betrayal, as it limits one's potential and depth of thought. In contrast, existing without opinions leads to a passive life, lacking engagement and awareness. The most profound state, according to Pessoa, is that of a poet, who is free to explore and embody a myriad of perspectives, creating meaning and beauty from the complexity of human experience.
In practice
This quote can be shared in a discussion about the value of open-mindedness in creative fields.
I have at this moment so many fundamental thoughts, so many truly metaphysical things to say, that I suddenly get tired and decide not to write any more, not to think any more, but to allow the fever of speaking to make me sleepy, and with my eyes closed, like a cat, I play with everything I could have said.
It's been months since I last wrote. I've lived in a state of mental slumber, leading the life of someone else. I've felt, very often, a vicarious happiness. I haven't existed. I've been someone else. I've lived without thinking.
We all have two lives: The true, the one we dreamed of in childhood And go on dreaming of as adults in a substratum of mist; the false, the one we love when we live with others, the practical, the useful, the one we end up by being put in a coffin.
I'm a man for whom the outside world is an inner Reality.
My dreams are a stupid refuge, like an umbrella against a thunderbolt.
The chill of what I won't feel gnaws at my present heart.
There is a kind of dictatorship that can come about through a creeping paralysis of thought, readiness to accept paternalistic measures by government, and along with those measures comes a surrender of our own responsibilities and therefore a surrender of our own thought over our own lives and our own right to exercise the vote. The free system gives the right to every citizen to do something for himself. Because he has the right, the opportunity is always there.
The hope of a secure and livable world lies with disciplined nonconformists, who are dedicated to justice, peace and brotherhood. The trailblazers in human, academic, scientific and religious freedom have always been nonconformists. In any cause that concerns the progress of mankind, put your faith in the nonconformist!
When Levin thought what he was and what he was living for, he could find no answer to the questions and was reduced to despair; but when he left off questioning himself about it, it seemed as though he knew both what he was and what he was living for, acting and living resolutely and without hesitation.
It don't matter if you believe in God Nick, he believes in you.
It is curious to note how fragile the memory is, even for the important times in one's life. This is, moreover, what explains the fortunate fantasy of history.
That's the only place in all the lands we've ever heard of that we don't want to see any closer; and that's the one place we're trying to get to! And that's just where we can't get, nohow.
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