We know the particular poem, not what it says that we can restate.

Quote by Allen Tate

Topics: Allen Tate Quotes

Poets, in their way, are practical men; they are interested in results.

Poets, in their way, are practical men; they are interested in results.

Men expect too much, do too little.

Men expect too much, do too little.

So the poet, who wants to be something that he cannot be, and is a...

So the poet, who wants to be something that he cannot be, and is a...

A poem may be an instance of morality, of social conditions, of psychological history; it...

A poem may be an instance of morality, of social conditions, of psychological history; it...

Narcissism and the Confederate dead cannot be connected logically, or even historically; even were the...

Narcissism and the Confederate dead cannot be connected logically, or even historically; even were the...

The only real evidence that any critic may bring before his gaze is the finished...

The only real evidence that any critic may bring before his gaze is the finished...

The innocent mansion of a panther's heart!

The innocent mansion of a panther's heart!

Experience means conflict, our natures being what they are, and conflict means drama.

Experience means conflict, our natures being what they are, and conflict means drama.

How does one happen to write a poem: where does it come from? That is...

How does one happen to write a poem: where does it come from? That is...

Other psychological theories say a good deal about compensation.

Other psychological theories say a good deal about compensation.

Genetic theories, I gather, have been cherished academically with detachment.

Genetic theories, I gather, have been cherished academically with detachment.

What is the poem, after it is written? That is the question. Not where it...

What is the poem, after it is written? That is the question. Not where it...

At twelve I was determined to shoot only For honor; at twenty not to shoot...

At twelve I was determined to shoot only For honor; at twenty not to shoot...

Dramatic experience is not logical; it may be subdued to the kind of coherence that...

Dramatic experience is not logical; it may be subdued to the kind of coherence that...

Serious poetry deals with the fundamental conflicts that cannot be logically resolved: we can state...

Serious poetry deals with the fundamental conflicts that cannot be logically resolved: we can state...

There is probably nothing wrong with art for art's sake if we take the phrase...

There is probably nothing wrong with art for art's sake if we take the phrase...

In a manner of speaking, the poem is its own knower, neither poet nor reader...

In a manner of speaking, the poem is its own knower, neither poet nor reader...

The Spring I seek is in a new face only.

The Spring I seek is in a new face only.

For some reason most critics have a hard time fixing their minds directly under their...

For some reason most critics have a hard time fixing their minds directly under their...

But in our age the appeal to authority is weak, and I am of my...

But in our age the appeal to authority is weak, and I am of my...