The image of myself which I try to create in my own mind in order that I may love myself is very different from the image which I try to create in the minds of others in order that they may love me.

As a poet, there is only one political duty, and that is to defend one's language from corruption.

A god who is both self-sufficient and content to remain so could not interest us enough to raise the question of his existence.

No person can be a great leader unless he takes genuine joy in the successes of those under him.

A poet feels the impulse to create a work of art when the passive awe provoked by an event is transformed into a desire to express that awe in a rite of worship.

Some writers confuse authenticity, which they ought always to aim at, with originality, which they should never bother about.

All sins tend to be addictive, and the terminal point of addiction is damnation.