Poetry Quotes by Czesław Miłosz

5 Poetry quotes by Czesław Miłosz

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“There was no castle. You were simply listening to a record. A needle, swaying lightly on a black frozen pond, Led the…

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“The purpose of poetry is to remind us how difficult it is to remain just one person, for our house is open, there are no keys in the doors, and invisible guests come in and out at will. What I'm saying here is not, I agree, poetry, as poems should be written rarely and reluctantly, under unbearable duress and only…

Czesław Miłosz

“A man is lying under machine-gun fire on a street in an embattled city. He looks at the pavement and sees a very amusing sight: the cobblestones are standing upright like the quills of a porcupine. The bullets hitting against their edges displace and tilt them. Such moments in the consciousness of a man judge all poets and philosophers. Let…

Czesław Miłosz

“You who wronged a simple man Bursting into laughter at the crime, And kept a pack of fools around you To mix good and evil, to blur the line, Though everyone bowed down before you, Saying virtue and wisdom lit your way, Striking gold medals in your honor, Glad to have survived another day, Do not feel safe. The poet…

Czesław Miłosz

“Since poetry deals with the singular, not the general, it cannot - if it is good poetry - look at things of…

Czesław Miłosz

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More by Czesław Miłosz

“When, after a long life, it falls out That he takes on a form he had sought And every word carved in stone Grows…

Czesław Miłosz

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“In the people's democracies, the Communists speak of the "New Faith" and compare its growth to that of Christianity in the Roman Empire. There has been instituted in France a group of worker-priests, who do regular work in the factories and bring the Gospel to the laboring masses while sharing fully in their living conditions. A large proportion of these…

Czesław Miłosz

“And when people cease to believe that there is good and evil, Only beauty will call to them and save them So that they…

Czesław Miłosz

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“There was no castle. You were simply listening to a record. A needle, swaying lightly on a black frozen pond, Led the voices of…

Czesław Miłosz

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“You say a name, but its not known to anyone. Either because that man died or because He was a celebrity on the banks of another river. Chiaromonte Miomandre Petőfi Mickiewicz Young generations are not interested in what happened Somewhere else, long ago. And what about the teachers who repeated: Ars longa, vita brevis? Their laurel crowned deceptions will soon…

Czesław Miłosz

“When everything was fine And the notion of sin had vanished And the earth was ready In universal peace To consume and rejoice Without creeds and utopias, I, for unknown reasons, Surrounded by the books Of prophets and theologians, Of philosophers, poets, Searched for an answer, Scowling, grimacing, Waking up at night, muttering at dawn. What oppressed me so much…

Czesław Miłosz

“The purpose of poetry is to remind us how difficult it is to remain just one person, for our house is open, there are no keys in the doors, and invisible guests come in and out at will. What I'm saying here is not, I agree, poetry, as poems should be written rarely and reluctantly, under unbearable duress and only…

Czesław Miłosz

“You whom I could not save Listen to me. Try to understand this simple speech as I would be ashamed of another. I swear,…

Czesław Miłosz

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“A man is lying under machine-gun fire on a street in an embattled city. He looks at the pavement and sees a very amusing sight: the cobblestones are standing upright like the quills of a porcupine. The bullets hitting against their edges displace and tilt them. Such moments in the consciousness of a man judge all poets and philosophers. Let…

Czesław Miłosz

“I still think too much about the mothers And ask what is man born of woman. He curls himself up and protects his head…

Czesław Miłosz

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“Of all things broken and lost, porcelain troubles me most.”

Czesław Miłosz

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“You who wronged a simple man Bursting into laughter at the crime, And kept a pack of fools around you To mix good and evil, to blur the line, Though everyone bowed down before you, Saying virtue and wisdom lit your way, Striking gold medals in your honor, Glad to have survived another day, Do not feel safe. The poet…

Czesław Miłosz