If a poet interprets a poem of his own he limits its suggestibility.
William Butler YeatsRead
I agree about Shaw - he is haunted by the mystery he flouts. He is an atheist who trembles in the haunted corridor.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects on the paradox of an atheist's struggle with existential mysteries and fears.
William Butler Yeats discusses the complexity of human belief systems through the lens of George Bernard Shaw, suggesting that even those who reject traditional beliefs, like atheists, may still grapple with deep-seated fears and mysteries of existence. Shaw, though outwardly confident in his atheism, is portrayed as someone who cannot escape the haunting questions that life presents, illustrating the often contradictory nature of human thought and belief.
Themes
AtheismExistenceMysteryBeliefFear
In practice
Example use cases
In a philosophical debate about the existence of God, this quote emphasizes the internal conflicts many atheists face.
More from William Butler Yeats
All quotes →It was my first meeting with a philosophy that confirmed my vague speculations and seemed at once logical and boundless.
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But I, being poor, have only my dreams; I have spread my dreams under your feet; Tread softly because you tread on my dreams.
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How far away the stars seem, and how far is our first kiss, and ah, how old my heart.
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For he would be thinking of love Till the stars had run away And the shadows eaten the moon.
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Love is created and preserved by intellectual analysis, for we love only that which is unique, and it belongs to contemplation, not to action, for we would not change that which we love.
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