True revolutions in art restore more than they destroy.

It is not possible, for a poet, writing in any language, to protect himself from the tragic elements in human life.... [ellipsis in source] Illness, old age, and death--subjects as ancient as humanity--these are the subjects that the poet must speak of very nearly from the first moment that he begins to speak.

But childhood prolonged, cannot remain a fairyland. It becomes a hell.

Innocence of heart and violence of feeling are necessary in any kind of superior achievement: The arts cannot exist without them.

Your work is carved out of agony as a statue is carved out of marble.

All art, in spite of the struggles of some critics to prove otherwise, is based on emotion and projects emotion.

Because language is the carrier of ideas, it is easy to believe that it should be very little else than such a carrier.