--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When something is too beautiful or too…" description: "\"When something is too beautiful or too terrible or even too funny for words, then it is time for poetry.\" — Eve Merriam" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b5f/eve-merriam-45996_beautiful_when-something-is-too-beautiful-or-too-t_1774743.png" --- # When something is too beautiful or too terrible or even… ![“When something is too beautiful or too terrible or even too funny for words, then it is time for poetry.” quote by Eve Merriam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b5f/eve-merriam-45996_beautiful_when-something-is-too-beautiful-or-too-t_1774743.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b5f/eve-merriam-45996_beautiful_when-something-is-too-beautiful-or-too-t_1774743.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b5f/eve-merriam-45996_beautiful_when-something-is-too-beautiful-or-too-t_1774743.png) > “When something is too beautiful or too terrible or even too funny for words, then it is time for poetry.” [Eve Merriam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eve-merriam/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. When reality overwhelms language, poetry becomes the appropriate response. **In simple terms:** Poetry fills the gap when words fail. Key Takeaway Turn to poetry when emotions exceed language. Themes art emotion expression Mood reflective introspective Type literary inspirational When to use this quote - grief - joy - humor - beauty - shock Key Concepts aesthetic transcendence Questions to Reflect On - What moments have you felt speech insufficient? - How can poetry reshape perception? A Different Perspective Poetry may not convey precise facts. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Beautiful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beautiful/) [Funny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funny/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Time poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time-poetry/) [Too funny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/too-funny/) [Words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/words/) ## Related quotes > [“He's not my boyfriend." "Ha. That's a good one. I saw you two tonsil surfing out there." I could kill her. "I don't even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-jones/he-s-not-my-boyfriend-ha-that-s-a-good-one-i-saw-you-two-tonsil/) [Carrie Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-jones/) > [ \[Simone Weil's\] life is almost a perfect blend of the Comic and the Terrible, which two things may be opposite sides of the same… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/simone-weil-s-life-is-almost-a-perfect-blend-of-the-comic-and-the/) [Flannery O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flannery-o-connor/) > [I feel like with comedy, the crazy things that happen are never serious you know? Like, rubble being poured onto you in drama would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanessa-hudgens/i-feel-like-with-comedy-the-crazy-things-that-happen-are-never/) [Vanessa Hudgens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vanessa-hudgens/) > [I remember as a kid liking long, funny words. And often being into things like that can be perceived as square. But actually, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konnie-huq/i-remember-as-a-kid-liking-long-funny-words-and-often-being-into/) [Konnie Huq](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konnie-huq/) > [It's funny how the words we never say can turn into the only thoughts we know](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-s-funny-how-the-words-we-never-say-can-turn-into-the-only-thoughts/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It's funny how a few words from you could make me feel a million times better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-s-funny-how-a-few-words-from-you-could-make-me-feel-a-million/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Girls look me up and down and have nothing to say, but it's funny how the words come out when I walk away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author-name/girls-look-me-up-and-down-and-have-nothing-to-say-but-it-s-funny-how/) Author Name > [Donald Trump's words are are not funny, his words are poisonous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tulip-siddiq/donald-trump-s-words-are-are-not-funny-his-words-are-poisonous/) [Tulip Siddiq](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tulip-siddiq/) > [Let's just say that most people, when learning a new language, are only interested in 'funny' words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josephine-jobert/let-s-just-say-that-most-people-when-learning-a-new-language-are-only/) [Josephine Jobert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josephine-jobert/) > [He talks to me but I look away, it's funny how all the words come out when he walks away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/he-talks-to-me-but-i-look-away-it-s-funny-how-all-the-words-come-out/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The funny part of being funny is when you start seeing your fans writing funny words and attributing them to you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bassey-johnson/the-funny-part-of-being-funny-is-when-you-start-seeing-your-fans/) [Michael Bassey Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bassey-johnson/) > [Girls look me up and down but never have anything say; funny how the words come out the moment I walk away...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/girls-look-me-up-and-down-but-never-have-anything-say-funny-how-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [ Poets are political, they have to be reflections of their times \[because\] they're living in their times... Poetry is political in that it's standing… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cusack/poets-are-political-they-have-to-be-reflections-of-their-times/) [John Cusack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cusack/) > [The difference between prose logic and poetic thought is simple. The logician uses words as a builder uses bricks, for the unemotional deadness of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-graves/the-difference-between-prose-logic-and-poetic-thought-is-simple-the/) [Robert Graves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-graves/) > [No time for poetry but exactly what is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/no-time-for-poetry-but-exactly-what-is/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) ## More by Eve Merriam > [Morning is a new sheet of paper for you to write on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eve-merriam/morning-is-a-new-sheet-of-paper-for-you-to-write-on/) [Eve Merriam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eve-merriam/) > [It's just an old alley cat that has followed us all the way home. It hasn't a star on its forehead, or a silky…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eve-merriam/it-s-just-an-old-alley-cat-that-has-followed-us-all-the-way-home-it/) [Eve Merriam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eve-merriam/) > [Don't be polite. Bite in. Pick it up with your fingers and lick the juice that may run down your chin. It is ready…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eve-merriam/don-t-be-polite-bite-in-pick-it-up-with-your-fingers-and-lick-the/) [Eve Merriam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eve-merriam/) > [Scratch a Jew and you'll find a Wailing Wall.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eve-merriam/scratch-a-jew-and-you-ll-find-a-wailing-wall/) [Eve Merriam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eve-merriam/) > [whatever you do, find ways to read poerty. Eat it, drink it, enjoy it, and share it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eve-merriam/whatever-you-do-find-ways-to-read-poerty-eat-it-drink-it-enjoy-it-and/) [Eve Merriam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eve-merriam/) > [...a good poem contains both meaning and music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eve-merriam/a-good-poem-contains-both-meaning-and-music/) [Eve Merriam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eve-merriam/) > [I dream of giving birth to a child who will ask: "Mother, what was war?"](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eve-merriam/i-dream-of-giving-birth-to-a-child-who-will-ask-mother-what-was-war/) [Eve Merriam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eve-merriam/) [Explore all 8 Eve Merriam quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eve-merriam/) ## More Beautiful quotes > [I received a beautiful welcome to the world of music. I want to give something back to the younger generation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luciano-pavarotti/i-received-a-beautiful-welcome-to-the-world-of-music-i-want-to-give/) [Luciano Pavarotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luciano-pavarotti/) > [Being beautiful comes naturally!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-beautiful-comes-naturally/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [My school was one of the most beautiful places a child can grow up in. You are surrounded by nature - cats, dogs, birds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amala-akkineni/my-school-was-one-of-the-most-beautiful-places-a-child-can-grow-up-in/) [Amala Akkineni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amala-akkineni/) > [“do not misunderstand person by beauty You really do not know its real or Mask on dirty thoughts”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammed-zaki-ansari/do-not-misunderstand-person-by-beauty-you-really-do-not-know-its-real/) [Mohammed Zaki Ansari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammed-zaki-ansari/) > [In the hearing world, I'm constantly having to lip-read and trying to understand what's going on. Sign language is so beautiful. It gives you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-ayling-ellis/in-the-hearing-world-i-m-constantly-having-to-lip-read-and-trying-to/) [Rose Ayling-Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-ayling-ellis/) > [The more perfect the sight is the more delightful the beautiful object. The more perfect the appetite, the sweeter the food. The more musical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-baxter/the-more-perfect-the-sight-is-the-more-delightful-the-beautiful/) [Richard Baxter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-baxter/) > [Call her beautiful a million times and she won't believe you. Call her ugly once, and she will never forget it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tumblr/call-her-beautiful-a-million-times-and-she-won-t-believe-you-call-her/) Tumblr > [You will never know just how beautiful you are to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-will-never-know-just-how-beautiful-you-are-to-me/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You felt a deep sorrow, the kind of melancholy you feel when you're in a beautiful place and the sun is going down](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thrity-umrigar/you-felt-a-deep-sorrow-the-kind-of-melancholy-you-feel-when-you-re-in/) [Thrity Umrigar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thrity-umrigar/) > [ Teaching might even be the greatest of the arts since the medium is the human mind and spirit. My three \[great teachers\] did not… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/teaching-might-even-be-the-greatest-of-the-arts-since-the-medium-is/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [You're beautiful, cute, pretty, gorgeous, and fuck.. I ran out of words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raghib-clitso/you-re-beautiful-cute-pretty-gorgeous-and-fuck-i-ran-out-of-words/) [Raghib Clitso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raghib-clitso/) > [Growing up in Iceland, it was very beautiful, very safe, but quite isolated. There was something about jazz music that had a way of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laufey/growing-up-in-iceland-it-was-very-beautiful-very-safe-but-quite/) [Laufey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laufey/) > [How could you feel worthless when God has honoured you by creating you and choosing you to be with Him, in this life and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yasmin-mogahed/how-could-you-feel-worthless-when-god-has-honoured-you-by-creating/) [Yasmin Mogahed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yasmin-mogahed/) > [Sometimes it's about less is more. It's about the seed. Thinking about this gigantic tree that you think is so beautiful but it started…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-durst/sometimes-it-s-about-less-is-more-it-s-about-the-seed-thinking-about/) [Fred Durst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-durst/) > [God's Word does provide life lessons to teach us how to live. And it gives us beautiful poetry that gives voice to our human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-rothschild/god-s-word-does-provide-life-lessons-to-teach-us-how-to-live-and-it/) [Jennifer Rothschild](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-rothschild/) [Browse all 17,976 Beautiful quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beautiful/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When something is too beautiful or too terrible or even too funny for words, then it is time for poetry.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Eve Merriam" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eve-merriam/when-something-is-too-beautiful-or-too-terrible-or-even-too-funny-for/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Beautiful" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eve-merriam/when-something-is-too-beautiful-or-too-terrible-or-even-too-funny-for/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b5f/eve-merriam-45996_beautiful_when-something-is-too-beautiful-or-too-t_1774743.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b5f/eve-merriam-45996_beautiful_when-something-is-too-beautiful-or-too-t_1774743.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b5f/eve-merriam-45996_beautiful_when-something-is-too-beautiful-or-too-t_1774743.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“When something is too beautiful or too terrible or even too funny for words, then it is time for poetry.” — Eve Merriam", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Eve Merriam", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eve-merriam/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "When something is too beautiful or...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eve-merriam/when-something-is-too-beautiful-or-too-terrible-or-even-too-funny-for/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eve-merriam/when-something-is-too-beautiful-or-too-terrible-or-even-too-funny-for/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```