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Wallace Stevens on Poetry

1879–1955 United States

← All quotes by Wallace Stevens

10 quotes

Everything is complicated; if that were not so, life and poetry and everything else would be a bore.

After one has abandoned a belief in God, poetry is that essence which takes its place as life’s redemption.

Opus Posthumous (1957)

Let wise men piece the world together with wisdom
Or poets with holy magic.
Hey-di-ho.

Opus Posthumous (1957)

A poet looks at the world somewhat as a man looks at a woman.

Opus Posthumous (1955)

Poetry is poetry, and one’s objective as a poet is to achieve poetry precisely as one’s objective in music is to achieve music.

Poetry is a purging of the world's poverty and change and evil and death. It is a present perfecting, a satisfaction in the irremediable poverty of life.

Opus Posthumous (1957)

Poetry is a search for the inexplicable.

Opus Posthumous (1957)

The essential gaudiness of poetry.

Harmonium (1923)

All poetry is experimental poetry.

Opus Posthumous (1957)

Poetry is an effort of a dissatisfied man to find satisfaction through words.

Attributed

Attribution

Quotes and notes from Wikiquote: Wallace Stevens (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0.