--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What this country needs is a great poem…" description: "\"What this country needs is a great poem. John Brown's Body was a step in the right direction. I've read it once, and I'm reading it again. But it's too..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e03/herbert-hoover-1115_patriotism_what-this-country-needs-is-a-great-poem_3189898.jpg" --- # What this country needs is a great poem. John Brown's Body… ![“What this country needs is a great poem. John Brown's Body was a step in the right direction. I've read it once, and I'm reading it again. But it's too long to do what I mean. You can't thrill people in 300 pages.” quote by Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e03/herbert-hoover-1115_patriotism_what-this-country-needs-is-a-great-poem_3189898.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e03/herbert-hoover-1115_patriotism_what-this-country-needs-is-a-great-poem_3189898.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e03/herbert-hoover-1115_patriotism_what-this-country-needs-is-a-great-poem_3189898.jpg) > “What this country needs is a great poem. John Brown's Body was a step in the right direction. I've read it once, and I'm reading it again. But it's too long to do what I mean. You can't thrill people in 300 pages.” [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A nation needs concise, powerful poetry to inspire, not lengthy works that lose impact. **In simple terms:** Short, powerful poems inspire better than long ones. Key Takeaway Use concise, resonant language. Themes inspiration poetry communication Mood thoughtful serious Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - political speeches - advertising - education - media messaging Key Concepts conciseness emotional impact public discourse Questions to Reflect On - How can you distill a big idea into a short form? - When is length justified? A Different Perspective Complex ideas may need depth that brevity cannot provide. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [300 Pages](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/300-pages-964784/) [Great Poem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-poem-588930/) [Patriotism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patriotism/) [Poem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poem/) [Poem John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poem-john-5880156/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Poets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poets/) [Reading Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading-long-696966/) [Right direction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/right-direction/) [Too long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/too-long/) ## Related quotes > [Failing to graduate a populace that values reading has long-term consequences for everyone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donalyn-miller/failing-to-graduate-a-populace-that-values-reading-has-long-term/) [Donalyn Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donalyn-miller/) > [I love reading but I never last very long because I fall asleep right away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-rieu/i-love-reading-but-i-never-last-very-long-because-i-fall-asleep-right/) [Andre Rieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-rieu/) > [“You will always find me writing and reading as long as I have the breath of life within me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-d-green/you-will-always-find-me-writing-and-reading-as-long-as-i-have-the/) [K.D. Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-d-green/) > [There's no question that our children's attention and memory is changing when they are reading too long, too much, too early on digital screens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maryanne-wolf/there-s-no-question-that-our-children-s-attention-and-memory-is/) [Maryanne Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maryanne-wolf/) > [“Some people read for instruction, which is praiseworthy, and some for pleasure, which is innocent, but not a few read from habit, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/some-people-read-for-instruction-which-is-praiseworthy-and-some-for/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [On the whole, I don't like reading long books. I'm not a fan of 'Ulysses.' And I haven't quite finished 'War and Peace.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-seth/on-the-whole-i-don-t-like-reading-long-books-i-m-not-a-fan-of-ulysses/) [Vikram Seth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-seth/) > [One of my rigid goals is to keep each book under 300 pages because I think so much nonfiction is literally weighty that people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-cahill/one-of-my-rigid-goals-is-to-keep-each-book-under-300-pages-because-i/) [Thomas Cahill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-cahill/) > [Inspiration is easy. The hard part is getting the inspiration onto 300 pages in an interesting, cohesive, easy-to-read but hard-to-forget story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-evanovich/inspiration-is-easy-the-hard-part-is-getting-the-inspiration-onto-300/) [Janet Evanovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-evanovich/) > [I have never been clever enough - or egotistical enough to spend 300 pages dipping into the sludge of my own subconscious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-graham/i-have-never-been-clever-enough-or-egotistical-enough-to-spend-300/) [Winston Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-graham/) > [The wonderful thing about a book is that you have a canvas that is 300 pages wide, and it's all free space. You can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephan-pastis/the-wonderful-thing-about-a-book-is-that-you-have-a-canvas-that-is/) [Stephan Pastis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephan-pastis/) > [I want my characters to really overuse their coping mechanisms to the point where they break down within 300 pages.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/i-want-my-characters-to-really-overuse-their-coping-mechanisms-to-the/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [I'd like to meet fewer people who say 'Oh, I want to write a book, here are 10 pages I've written,' and more 'Oh,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teju-cole/i-d-like-to-meet-fewer-people-who-say-oh-i-want-to-write-a-book-here/) [Teju Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teju-cole/) > [I won't read a book that starts with a description of the weather. I don't read books over 300 pages, though I'll make an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elmore-leonard/i-won-t-read-a-book-that-starts-with-a-description-of-the-weather-i/) [Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/) > [Re-examine all you have been told at school or church or in any book, dismiss whatever insults your own soul; and your very flesh…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/re-examine-all-you-have-been-told-at-school-or-church-or-in-any-book/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [The great poem and the deep theorem are new to every reader, and yet are his own experiences, because he himself recreates them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-bronowski/the-great-poem-and-the-deep-theorem-are-new-to-every-reader-and-yet/) [Jacob Bronowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-bronowski/) ## More by Herbert Hoover > [While the crash only took place six months ago, I am convinced we have now passed the worst, and with continued unity of effort,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/while-the-crash-only-took-place-six-months-ago-i-am-convinced-we-have/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [Fishing is a constant reminder of the democracy of life, of humility, and of human frailty. The forces of nature discriminate for no man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/fishing-is-a-constant-reminder-of-the-democracy-of-life-of-humility/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [It is a great profession. There is the fascination of watching a figment of the imagination emerge through the aid of science to a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/it-is-a-great-profession-there-is-the-fascination-of-watching-a/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [The human animal originally came from out-of-doors. When spring begins to move in his bones, he just must get out again. Moreover, as civilization,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/the-human-animal-originally-came-from-out-of-doors-when-spring-begins/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [“No one ever listened themselves out of a job.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/no-one-ever-listened-themselves-out-of-a-job/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [Somebody has inquired as to whether I will be going to the opening baseball game. I hope to have that pleasure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/somebody-has-inquired-as-to-whether-i-will-be-going-to-the-opening/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [It is always possible that occasional individuals may have overstepped the law and humanity in treatment of criminals and those charged with crime, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/it-is-always-possible-that-occasional-individuals-may-have/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [One of the primary necessities of the world for the maintenance of peace is the elimination of the frictions which arise from competitive armament.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/one-of-the-primary-necessities-of-the-world-for-the-maintenance-of/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [Man is still by instinct a predatory animal given to devilish aggression. The discoveries of science have immensely increased productivity of material things. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/man-is-still-by-instinct-a-predatory-animal-given-to-devilish/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [You convey too great a compliment when you say that I have earned the right to the presidential nomination. No man can establish such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/you-convey-too-great-a-compliment-when-you-say-that-i-have-earned-the/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [“Leadership cannot be created synthetically. Men must be what they were made by the Almighty or the American people will find them out in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/leadership-cannot-be-created-synthetically-men-must-be-what-they-were/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [When we are sick, we want an uncommon doctor; when we have a construction job to do, we want an uncommon engineer, and when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/when-we-are-sick-we-want-an-uncommon-doctor-when-we-have-a/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [My boyhood ambition was to be able to earn my own living, without the help of anybody, anywhere,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/my-boyhood-ambition-was-to-be-able-to-earn-my-own-living-without-the/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [If America is to be run by the people, it is the people who must think. And we do not need to put on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/if-america-is-to-be-run-by-the-people-it-is-the-people-who-must-think/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [The New Deal repudiation of democracy has left the Republican Party alone the guardian of the Ark of the Covenant with its charter of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/the-new-deal-repudiation-of-democracy-has-left-the-republican-party/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) [Explore all 290 Herbert Hoover quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) ## More Patriotism quotes > [That's what this country is. It's made up of immigrants.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bria-vinaite/that-s-what-this-country-is-it-s-made-up-of-immigrants/) [Bria Vinaite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bria-vinaite/) > [You have expressive nationalism, I mean very identity driven, which shaped each other a lot of that in the Middle East.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/subrahmanyam-jaishankar/you-have-expressive-nationalism-i-mean-very-identity-driven-which/) [Subrahmanyam Jaishankar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/subrahmanyam-jaishankar/) > [The rich people are apparently leaving America. They're giving up their citizenship. These great lovers of America who made their money in this country-when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/the-rich-people-are-apparently-leaving-america-they-re-giving-up/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [I am not a nationalist in any way, and I hate flag waving, and I don't think much good has come out of nationalism.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stellan-skarsgard/i-am-not-a-nationalist-in-any-way-and-i-hate-flag-waving-and-i-don-t/) [Stellan Skarsgard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stellan-skarsgard/) > [In this choice of inheritance we have given to our frame of polity the image of a relation in blood; binding up the constitution…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/in-this-choice-of-inheritance-we-have-given-to-our-frame-of-polity/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) > [She might be without country, without nation, but inside her there was still a being that could exist and be free, that could simply…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-maas/she-might-be-without-country-without-nation-but-inside-her-there-was/) [Sharon Maas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharon-maas/) > [To be a Negro in this country and to be relatively conscious is to be in a rage almost all the time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-be-a-negro-in-this-country-and-to-be-relatively-conscious-is-to-be/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Patriotism is a fierce love for the nation’s soul - its land, its people, its core, coupled with a burning contempt for a government…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/njau-kihia/patriotism-is-a-fierce-love-for-the-nation-s-soul-its-land-its-people/) [Njau Kihia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/njau-kihia/) > [There is no patriotic art and no patriotic science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/there-is-no-patriotic-art-and-no-patriotic-science/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Cricket, politics, and cinema is what a majority in our country are most passionate about. They have the power to divide the best of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vijay-deverakonda/cricket-politics-and-cinema-is-what-a-majority-in-our-country-are/) [Vijay Deverakonda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vijay-deverakonda/) > [“A man full of warm, speculative benevolence may wish his society otherwise constituted than he finds it; but a good patriot, and a true…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/a-man-full-of-warm-speculative-benevolence-may-wish-his-society/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) > [The Patriot Act is certainly a concern; all of those things are dangerous. I think more important than me preaching is that we as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-clooney/the-patriot-act-is-certainly-a-concern-all-of-those-things-are/) [George Clooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-clooney/) > [Anybody can be good in the country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/anybody-can-be-good-in-the-country/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [I will do everything I can always for my country.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felipe-massa/i-will-do-everything-i-can-always-for-my-country/) [Felipe Massa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felipe-massa/) > [All the people in Korea are cheering me like I'm a gold medalist or something, so I have a responsibility to my country.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/psy/all-the-people-in-korea-are-cheering-me-like-i-m-a-gold-medalist-or/) [PSY](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/psy/) [Browse all 5,882 Patriotism quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patriotism/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "What this country needs is a great poem. 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