“He who would write heroic poems should make his whole life a heroic poem.”

Life of Schiller.
1820s, Critical and Miscellaneous Essays (1827–1855)

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Thomas Carlyle481

Scottish philosopher, satirical writer, essayist, historian… 1795–1881

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“There is no heroic poem in the world but is at bottom a biography, the life of a man; also, it may be said, there is no life of a man, faithfully recorded, but is a heroic poem of its sort, rhymed or unrhymed.”

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“It is generally thought very ridiculous to pretend to write an Heroic Poem, or a fine Discourse upon any Subject, without understanding the Propriety of the Language wrote in; and to me it seems no less ridiculous for one to pretend to make a good Picture without understanding Perspective…”

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“A man cannot write a poem or a story that will transform the whole nature of man, his reality and his truth, making them greater and nobler.”

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