--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The real question should be: what makes a…" description: "\"The real question should be: what makes a good political poem? The possible answers to that question are both obvious and yet still a little too subjec..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d1/andre-naffis-sahely-20813_agree_the-real-question-should-be-what-makes-a_147569.jpg" --- # The real question should be: what makes a good political… ![“The real question should be: what makes a good political poem? The possible answers to that question are both obvious and yet still a little too subjective for anyone to ever fully agree on. What do I most wish to see in a political poet? Sublimated rebellion.” quote by Andre Naffis-Sahely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d1/andre-naffis-sahely-20813_agree_the-real-question-should-be-what-makes-a_147569.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d1/andre-naffis-sahely-20813_agree_the-real-question-should-be-what-makes-a_147569.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d1/andre-naffis-sahely-20813_agree_the-real-question-should-be-what-makes-a_147569.jpg) > “The real question should be: what makes a good political poem? The possible answers to that question are both obvious and yet still a little too subjective for anyone to ever fully agree on. What do I most wish to see in a political poet? Sublimated rebellion.” [Andre Naffis-Sahely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-naffis-sahely/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A good political poem should blend clear rebellion with artistic merit, balancing subjectivity and impact. **In simple terms:** Political poems need clear rebellion and artistic value. Key Takeaway Aim for impactful, thoughtful protest poetry. Themes politics art rebellion subjectivity expression Mood provocative inspirational Type creative political When to use this quote - poetry workshops - public discourse - education Key Concepts literary criticism activism Questions to Reflect On - What makes a political poem resonant? - How to balance artistic freedom with clear message? A Different Perspective Subjectivity makes consensus hard. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Good political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-political/) [Poet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poet/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Real questions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/real-questions/) [Rebellion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rebellion/) [Revolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/revolution/) [Subjective](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/subjective/) [Wish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wish/) ## Related quotes > [To be a political poet means simply to be a poet, and any poet worth their salt will be a political animal in their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-naffis-sahely/to-be-a-political-poet-means-simply-to-be-a-poet-and-any-poet-worth/) [Andre Naffis-Sahely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-naffis-sahely/) > [The average political poem - especially the kind that wears this label all too proudly - is both dull and full of brow-beating triteness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-naffis-sahely/the-average-political-poem-especially-the-kind-that-wears-this-label/) [Andre Naffis-Sahely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-naffis-sahely/) > [Political poetry is more profoundly emotional than any other-at least as much as love poetry-and cannot be forced because then it becomes vulgar and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-neruda/political-poetry-is-more-profoundly-emotional-than-any-other-at-least/) [Pablo Neruda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-neruda/) > [I've never read a political poem that's accomplished anything. Poetry makes things happen, but rarely what the poet wants.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-nemerov/i-ve-never-read-a-political-poem-that-s-accomplished-anything-poetry/) [Howard Nemerov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-nemerov/) > [I wrote a number of poems about Kah Tai lagoon, when Safeway was building that huge, ugly store down there where I used to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-hamill/i-wrote-a-number-of-poems-about-kah-tai-lagoon-when-safeway-was/) [Sam Hamill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-hamill/) > [During my twenties and thirties, my interest in the political poem increased as my apparent access to it declined. I sensed resistances around me.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eavan-boland/during-my-twenties-and-thirties-my-interest-in-the-political-poem/) [Eavan Boland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eavan-boland/) > [The Divine Comedy is a political poem and when you say poetry is not about - he's always quoted out of context, that "poetry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/the-divine-comedy-is-a-political-poem-and-when-you-say-poetry-is-not/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) > [Even the most political poem is an act of faith.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-espada/even-the-most-political-poem-is-an-act-of-faith/) Martin Espada > [We have two political parties in this country; we cannot have one of them be abandoned to complete nutcases. We've got to have two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-painter/we-have-two-political-parties-in-this-country-we-cannot-have-one-of/) [Richard Painter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-painter/) > [It is hard to think of anything which more tragically and clearly exemplifies the phenomenon of good political intentions achieving the precise opposite of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-n-wilson/it-is-hard-to-think-of-anything-which-more-tragically-and-clearly/) [A. N. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-n-wilson/) > [Doris Kearns Goodwin's Team of Rivals is instructive in painting a realistic portrayal of Lincoln and his methods for accomplishing his objectives. In fact,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-pfeffer/doris-kearns-goodwin-s-team-of-rivals-is-instructive-in-painting-a/) [Jeffrey Pfeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-pfeffer/) > [An empty stomach is not a good political adviser.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/an-empty-stomach-is-not-a-good-political-adviser/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [An empty stomach is not a good political advisor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/an-empty-stomach-is-not-a-good-political-advisor/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [The first rule of good theatre is 'Show, don't tell.' It applies to good political action as well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carne-ross/the-first-rule-of-good-theatre-is-show-don-t-tell-it-applies-to-good/) [Carne Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carne-ross/) > [The only good political movement I've seen lately was Occupy Wall Street. They had no leaders, which was genius. But unfortunately it always ends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lydon/the-only-good-political-movement-i-ve-seen-lately-was-occupy-wall/) [John Lydon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lydon/) ## More by Andre Naffis-Sahely > [Translators who choose to work on canonized writers can usually lean on an extensive critical apparatus around either the author or the book in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-naffis-sahely/translators-who-choose-to-work-on-canonized-writers-can-usually-lean/) [Andre Naffis-Sahely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-naffis-sahely/) > [As the Cameroonian philosopher Achille Mbembe has presciently pointed out, neoliberal corporate globalism threatens to exploit that advantage like never before, and it seems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-naffis-sahely/as-the-cameroonian-philosopher-achille-mbembe-has-presciently-pointed/) [Andre Naffis-Sahely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-naffis-sahely/) > [I've heard of translators collaborating closely with their authors, sometimes even living with them for a while, but that's not me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-naffis-sahely/i-ve-heard-of-translators-collaborating-closely-with-their-authors/) [Andre Naffis-Sahely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-naffis-sahely/) > [When it comes to the challenges of the actual process, I soldier on as best I can, on my own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-naffis-sahely/when-it-comes-to-the-challenges-of-the-actual-process-i-soldier-on-as/) [Andre Naffis-Sahely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-naffis-sahely/) > [I came to poetry at fourteen, in the middle of a booming oil-rush town in southern Arabia without a single public library: Abu Dhabi,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-naffis-sahely/i-came-to-poetry-at-fourteen-in-the-middle-of-a-booming-oil-rush-town/) [Andre Naffis-Sahely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-naffis-sahely/) > [Poetry either pulses with real life or it's just an aborted simulacra. There's no middle ground.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-naffis-sahely/poetry-either-pulses-with-real-life-or-it-s-just-an-aborted-simulacra/) [Andre Naffis-Sahely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-naffis-sahely/) > [Whenever poetry and politics are mentioned in the same breath, we tend to miss the point entirely - as I often have - and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-naffis-sahely/whenever-poetry-and-politics-are-mentioned-in-the-same-breath-we-tend/) [Andre Naffis-Sahely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-naffis-sahely/) > [I don't like poems that invent memories, I have enough of my own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-naffis-sahely/i-don-t-like-poems-that-invent-memories-i-have-enough-of-my-own/) [Andre Naffis-Sahely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-naffis-sahely/) > [ That boom town \[Abu Dhabi\] proved to be the reef against which my family crashed, the story of many who seek the promised land,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-naffis-sahely/that-boom-town-abu-dhabi-proved-to-be-the-reef-against-which-my/) [Andre Naffis-Sahely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-naffis-sahely/) > [Most of us have been subjected to terrible political poetry at least once or twice in our lifetimes, and so we tend to shy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-naffis-sahely/most-of-us-have-been-subjected-to-terrible-political-poetry-at-least/) [Andre Naffis-Sahely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-naffis-sahely/) > [Regardless of whether the authors I've translated have been "dead and canonized," or "living and established," or even simply "emerging," I must put myself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-naffis-sahely/regardless-of-whether-the-authors-i-ve-translated-have-been-dead-and/) [Andre Naffis-Sahely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-naffis-sahely/) > [ Abdellatif \[Laâbi\] was wildly popular with his students and it wasn't difficult to see why: like them, he knew that average Moroccans were hungry,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-naffis-sahely/abdellatif-la-bi-was-wildly-popular-with-his-students-and-it-wasn-t/) [Andre Naffis-Sahely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-naffis-sahely/) > [One cannot simply decide to write apolitical poetry, in the way one decides to drink lemonade instead of tea, it's far more subliminal than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-naffis-sahely/one-cannot-simply-decide-to-write-apolitical-poetry-in-the-way-one/) [Andre Naffis-Sahely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-naffis-sahely/) > [I'm of the opinion that poetry is always political, and cannot help but be so, regardless of the poet's intent, given that refusing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-naffis-sahely/i-m-of-the-opinion-that-poetry-is-always-political-and-cannot-help/) [Andre Naffis-Sahely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-naffis-sahely/) > [Dealing with politically-engaged writers of color like Abdellatif Laâbi and Rashid Boudjedra - who ran away from school aged sixteen to fight against the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-naffis-sahely/dealing-with-politically-engaged-writers-of-color-like-abdellatif-la/) [Andre Naffis-Sahely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-naffis-sahely/) [Explore all 30 Andre Naffis-Sahely quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-naffis-sahely/) ## More Agree quotes > [Any comprehensive doctrine, religious or secular, can be introduced into any political argument at any time, but I argue that people who do this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-rawls/any-comprehensive-doctrine-religious-or-secular-can-be-introduced/) [John Rawls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-rawls/) > [Islam never differentiates between men and women as regards political rights and puts them on an equal footing. However, even if a woman is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yusuf-al-qaradawi/islam-never-differentiates-between-men-and-women-as-regards-political/) [Yusuf al-Qaradawi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yusuf-al-qaradawi/) > [“All these creatures spend their time explaining, realizing happily that they agree with each other.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/all-these-creatures-spend-their-time-explaining-realizing-happily/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [I talk to fashion designers and say I want some money to save the rainforest, and they say, 'Oh, I agree with you completely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vivienne-westwood/i-talk-to-fashion-designers-and-say-i-want-some-money-to-save-the/) [Vivienne Westwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vivienne-westwood/) > [As for doing good; that is one of the professions which is full. Moreover I have tried it fairly and, strange as it may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/as-for-doing-good-that-is-one-of-the-professions-which-is-full/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Climate change poses clear, catastrophic threats. We may not agree on the extent, but we certainly can't afford the risk of inaction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rupert-murdoch/climate-change-poses-clear-catastrophic-threats-we-may-not-agree-on/) [Rupert Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rupert-murdoch/) > [Never be afraid of doing the thing you know in your heart is right, even if others don't agree.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-berg/never-be-afraid-of-doing-the-thing-you-know-in-your-heart-is-right/) [Elizabeth Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-berg/) > [It's fine to talk about politics with people you agree with. But it is rude to argue about politics with people you disagree with.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-lessig/it-s-fine-to-talk-about-politics-with-people-you-agree-with-but-it-is/) [Lawrence Lessig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-lessig/) > [ I will not agree to have this bill \[to repeal DADT \] go forward, because our economy is in the tank. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mccain/i-will-not-agree-to-have-this-bill-to-repeal-dadt-go-forward-because/) [John McCain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mccain/) > [“I tend to agree with that little devil more and more these days.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elle-casey/i-tend-to-agree-with-that-little-devil-more-and-more-these-days/) [Elle Casey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-casey/) > [People might not agree with me, but I think a woman should have a feminine shape, something you can get your hands on. You,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-ruiz-zafon/people-might-not-agree-with-me-but-i-think-a-woman-should-have-a/) [Carlos Ruiz Zafon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-ruiz-zafon/) > [On 9-11, we discovered that we cannot escape from the world. To me personally, this was a life-changing experience, and I realized, as did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/on-9-11-we-discovered-that-we-cannot-escape-from-the-world-to-me/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [But I would say if the Security Council is only relevant if it agrees with the United States, then we have come a long…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-blix/but-i-would-say-if-the-security-council-is-only-relevant-if-it-agrees/) [Hans Blix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-blix/) > [We're never all going to agree with each other. We have to learn to value the diversity. It's one of the presumable principles of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-r-ehrlich/we-re-never-all-going-to-agree-with-each-other-we-have-to-learn-to/) [Paul R. Ehrlich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-r-ehrlich/) > [A contract is an ask game, and if it asks for an hour, and I submit to an hour, then it's an hour. When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-berry/a-contract-is-an-ask-game-and-if-it-asks-for-an-hour-and-i-submit-to/) [Chuck Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-berry/) Browse all 3,079 Agree quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The real question should be: what makes a good political poem? The possible answers to that question are both obvious and yet still a little too subjective for anyone to ever fully agree on. What do I most wish to see in a political poet? 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