Married couples who quarrel bitterly every day may really need each other as deeply as those who appear to be desperately in love.
Edward AbbeyRead
The writer concerned more with technique than truth becomes a technician, not an artist.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Focusing solely on technique in writing can strip away the artistic essence and authenticity of the work.
Edward Abbey emphasizes that a writer who prioritizes technical skills over the truth of their expression risks diminishing their artistic integrity. Art is not merely a skill to be perfected but a reflection of genuine feelings and experiences; thus, when technique overshadows truth, the work becomes mechanical and devoid of emotional depth.
Themes
ArtWritingTechniqueTruthCreativity
In practice
Example use cases
A speaker at a literary conference might reference this quote to stress the importance of authenticity in creative writing.
More from Edward Abbey
All quotes βI love America because it is a confused, chaotic mess - and I hope we can keep it this way for at least another thousand years. The permissive society is the free society.
Edward AbbeyRead
If it's knowledge and wisdom you want, then seek out the company of those who do real work for an honest purpose.
Edward AbbeyRead
The earth is real. Only a fool, milking his cow, denies the cow's reality.
Edward AbbeyRead
I believe in nothing that I cannot touch, kiss, embrace.... The rest is only hearsay.
Edward AbbeyRead
Why can't we simply borrow what is useful to us from Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, especially Zen, as we borrow from Christianity, science, American Indian traditions and world literature in general, including philosophy, and let the rest go hang? Borrow what we need but rely principally upon our own senses, common sense and daily living experience.
Edward AbbeyRead
Similar quotes
All architecture has a public nature, I believe, so I would like to make a public space.
Tadao AndoRead
When you're in a play, 50 percent is the genius of the actor, 50 percent is the genius of the author. When a mime is not perfect, you see nothing.
Marcel MarceauRead
I used to go and flatten my nose against that window and absorb all I could of his art. It changed my life. I saw art then as I wanted to see it.
Mary CassattRead
You would get some fantastic syntactical phenomena. You would hear people talking in Barbados in the exact melody as a minor character in Shakespeare. Because here you have a thing that was not immured and preserved and mummified, but a voluble language, very active, very swift, very sharp.
Derek WalcottRead
Building a bridge, in my opinion, is a symbolic gesture, linked with the needs of people who cross over it, and with the idea of overcoming or surmounting obstacles. A modern bridge can also be a work of art. It helps to shape our daily lives and becomes a vital experience for all the people who use it.
Santiago CalatravaRead
For me, the importance in learning about the dance is using it as a voice. It's not about a step, it's about a way to express oneself.
Savion GloverRead