Poetry Quotes by Ian McEwan

12 Poetry quotes by Ian McEwan

McEwan’s brief foray into poetry mirrors his knack for precise, emotionally resonant storytelling. Though modest in number, these 12 pieces give a clear sense of his thoughtful, often introspective voice.

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“God said, Let there be pain. And there was poetry. Eventually.”

Ian McEwan

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“the beauty of poetic apprehension, the infinite joy of reason.”

Ian McEwan

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Most of humanity gets by without reading novels or poetry, and no one would deny the richness of their thoughts.

Ian Mcewan

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But to do its noticing and judging, poetry balances itself on the pinprick of the moment. Slowing down, stopping yourself completely, to…

Ian Mcewan

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As regards literary culture, it fascinates me that it has been so resilient to the Union. For example, when T.S. Eliot wanted…

Ian Mcewan

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I put it to you that there are no British poets, there are no British novelists. I have heard myself described as…

Ian Mcewan

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What is it precisely, that feeling of 'returning' from a poem? Something is lighter, softer, larger - then it fades, but never…

Ian Mcewan

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“Adversity forced awareness on us, and it works, it bites us when we go too near the fire, when we love too…

Ian McEwan

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“These names mean nothing to Perowne. But he understands how eminent poets, like senior consultants, live in a watchful, jealous world in…

Ian McEwan

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“We have many shelves of poetry at home, but still, it takes an effort to step out of the daily narrative of…

Ian McEwan

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“Once, on a walk by a river- Eskdale in low reddish sunlight, with a dusting of snow- his daughter quoted to him…

Ian McEwan

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“Becoming drunk is a journey that generally elates him in the early stages—he's good company, expansive, mischievous and fun, the famous old…

Ian McEwan

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More by Ian McEwan

“As you will see, we do not believe that artists have an obligation to strike up attitudes to the war. Indeed, they are wise…

Ian McEwan

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You could say that all novels are spy novels and all novelists are spy masters.

Ian Mcewan

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I've never had a moment's doubt. I love you. I believe in you completely. You are my dearest one. My reason for life.

Ian Mcewan

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“It is shaming sometimes, how the body will not, or cannot, lie about emotions.”

Ian McEwan

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“While my friends struggled and calculated, I reached a solution by a set of floating steps that were partly visual, partly just a feeling…

Ian McEwan

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“Once, on a walk by a river- Eskdale in low reddish sunlight, with a dusting of snow- his daughter quoted to him an opening…

Ian McEwan

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“Perhaps it's one of those cases of a microcosm giving you the whole world. Like a spode dinner plate. Or a single cell. Or,…

Ian McEwan

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Who you get, and how it works out- there's so much luck involved, as well as the million branching consequences of your conscious choice…

Ian Mcewan

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“On Chesil Beach he could have called out to Florence, he could have gone after her. He did not know, or would not have…

Ian McEwan

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It was always the view of my parents...that hot weather encouraged loose morals among young people.

Ian Mcewan

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I apologize for being obvious, but every time I watch the curtain come down on even a halfway decent production of a Shakespeare play…

Ian Mcewan

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I would rather be physically disabled obviously than mentally. I would rather be paraplegic than nuts. And it is a terrifying prospect and actually…

Ian Mcewan

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