Personal relations are the important thing for ever and ever, and not this outer life of telegrams and anger.
E. M. ForsterRead
A poem is true if it hangs together. Information points to something else. A poem points to nothing but itself.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote highlights the inherent value of poetry as an art form, emphasizing its self-referential nature.
E. M. Forster's quote suggests that a poem should be evaluated on its own coherence and internal integrity, distinguishing it from mere information that serves to convey facts or point towards something external. Poetry, in this sense, exists in its own right, transcending the need for external reference, and finding meaning solely within its artistic expression.
Themes
PoetryArtSelf-ReferenceCreativityExpression
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about modern poetry, one might use this quote to illustrate the unique nature of poetic expression.
More from E. M. Forster
All quotes βOne must be fond of people and trust them if one is not to make a mess of life.
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Oxford is Oxford: not a mere receptacle for youth, like Cambridge. Perhaps it wants its inmates to love it rather than to love one another.
E. M. ForsterRead
The fact is we can only love what we know personally. And we cannot know much. In public affairs, in the rebuilding of civilization, something less dramatic and emotional is needed, namely tolerance.
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One person with passion is better than forty people merely interested.
E. M. ForsterRead
Don't be mysterious; there isn't the time.
E. M. ForsterRead
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