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What a lumbering poor vehicle prose is for the conveying…

“What a lumbering poor vehicle prose is for the conveying of a great thought! ... Prose wanders around with a lantern & laboriously schedules & verifies the details & particulars of a valley & its frame of crags & peaks, then Poetry comes, & lays bare the whole landscape with a single splendid flash.” quote by Mark Twain
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“What a lumbering poor vehicle prose is for the conveying of a great thought! ... Prose wanders around with a lantern & laboriously schedules & verifies the details & particulars of a valley & its frame of crags & peaks, then Poetry comes, & lays bare the whole landscape with a single splendid flash.”

Mark Twain

About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Poetry captures entire ideas in a flash, while prose laboriously builds details step by step.

In simple terms: Poetry is quick, prose is slow.

Key Takeaway

Use poetry for impact, prose for depth.

Themes

creativity communication artistic expression

Mood

analytical inspirational

Type

literary educational

When to use this quote

  • writing
  • teaching
  • public speaking
  • advertising

Key Concepts

literary form cognitive processing

Questions to Reflect On

  • When is a concise image better than detail?
  • How can you balance brevity and depth?
A Different Perspective

Poetry may oversimplify complex topics.

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