The fact that we are here and that I speak these words is an attempt to break that silence and bridge some of those differences between us, for it is not difference which immobilizes us, but silence. And there are so many silences to be broken.
... poetry is not a luxury. It is a vital necessity of our existence. It forms the quality of the light within which we predicate our hopes and dreams toward survival and change, first made into language, then into idea, then into more tangible action. Poetry is the way we help give name to the nameless so it can be thought. The farthest horizons of our hopes and fears are cobbled by our poems, carved from the rock experiences of our daily lives.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Poetry is essential for expressing our hopes and experiences, shaping our understanding of life.
In this quote, Audre Lorde emphasizes the fundamental role of poetry in our lives, asserting that it is not merely an artistic luxury but a crucial element of human existence. She explains that poetry helps us articulate our innermost thoughts and emotions, transforming abstract ideas into language that can inspire action and foster understanding. By naming the nameless, poetry enables us to navigate our experiences, giving voice to our fears, aspirations, and the complex realities of life.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about the importance of the arts in education, this quote can highlight how poetry enriches our lives.
More from Audre Lorde
All quotes →There is no thing as a single-issue struggle because we do not live single-issue lives.
There are no new ideas. There are only new ways of making them felt.
I am not free while any woman is unfree, even when her shackles are very different from my own.
I am deliberate and afraid of nothing.
There's always someone asking you to underline one piece of yourself - whether it's Black, woman, mother, dyke, teacher, etc. - because that's the piece that they need to key in to. They want to dismiss everything else.
Similar quotes
The business of art lies just in this, -- to make that understood and felt which, in the form of an argument, might be incomprehensible and inaccessible.
Design is the fundamental soul of a man-made creation that ends up expressing itself in successive outer layers of the product or service. The iMac is not just the color or translucence or the shape of the shell. The essence of the iMac is to be the finest possible consumer computer in which each element plays together.
In my limited experience, shows are like children. You can teach them manners and dress them in little sailor suits, but in the end, they're going to be who they're going to be.
To paint is the most terrific thing that there is, but to do it well is very difficult.
Don't look for obscure formulas or mystery in my work. It is pure joy that I offer you. Look at my sculptures until you see them. Those closest to God have seen them.
I never see the whips niggas be claimin' they drivin,_x000D_ _x000D_ I guess 'entertainment' means blatantly lyin'.