The primary function of poetry, as of all the arts, is to make us more aware of ourselves and the world around us. I do not know if such increased awareness makes us more moral or more efficient. I hope not. I think it makes us more human, and I am quite certain it makes us more difficult to deceive.


Prose and travel books in prose and verse (ed. 1996)

W. H. Auden Quotes

The primary function of poetry, as of all the arts, is to make us more aware of ourselves and the world around us. I do not know if such increased...

The primary function of poetry, as of all the arts, is to make us more aware of ourselves and the world around us. I do not know if such increased...

The primary function of poetry, as of all the arts, is to make us more aware of ourselves and the world around us. I do not know if such increased...

The primary function of poetry, as of all the arts, is to make us more aware of ourselves and the world around us. I do not know if such increased...