“I think Miss Moore was right to cut “The Steeple-Jack” — the poem seems plainer and clearer in its shortened state — but she has cut too much… The reader may feel like saying, “Let her do as she pleases with the poem; it’s hers, isn’t it?” No; it’s much too good a poem for that, it long ago became everybody’s, and we can protest just as we could if Donatello cut off David’s left leg.”
“Her Shield”, p. 177
Poetry and the Age (1953)
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Randall Jarrell215
poet, critic, novelist, essayist 1914–1965Related quotes
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Ryōkan (1758–1831) Japanese Buddhist monk
Variant translation:<br>Who says my poems are poems?<br>My poems are not poems.<br>After you know my poems are not poems,<br>Then we can begin to discuss poetry! <br class="br"> "Zen Poetics of Ryokan" in Simply Haiku: A Quarterly Journal of Japanese Short Form Poetry (Summer 2006) http://www.hermitary.com/articles/ryokan_poetics.html <br class="br">Dewdrops on a Lotus Leaf : Zen Poems of Ryokan (1993)