--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Poetry's work is the clarification and…" description: "\"Poetry's work is the clarification and magnification of being.\" — Jane Hirshfield" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5bc/jane-hirshfield-2649_clarification_poetry-s-work-is-the-clarification-and-m_3228036.png" --- # Poetry's work is the clarification and magnification of… ![“Poetry's work is the clarification and magnification of being.” quote by Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5bc/jane-hirshfield-2649_clarification_poetry-s-work-is-the-clarification-and-m_3228036.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5bc/jane-hirshfield-2649_clarification_poetry-s-work-is-the-clarification-and-m_3228036.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5bc/jane-hirshfield-2649_clarification_poetry-s-work-is-the-clarification-and-m_3228036.png) > “Poetry's work is the clarification and magnification of being.” [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Poetry serves to clarify and amplify existence, revealing deeper truth about life. **In simple terms:** Poetry makes life clearer and larger. Key Takeaway Use poetry to explore and express your experience. Themes art existence clarification magnification Mood contemplative inspired Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - personal reflection - writing workshops - literary analysis Key Concepts aesthetics ontology language Questions to Reflect On - How does poetry change your perception of reality? - What aspects of being does poetry reveal? A Different Perspective Poetry may be inaccessible to some readers. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Magnification](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/magnification/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) ## Related quotes > [Poetry's work is not simply the recording of inner or outer perception; it makes by words and music new possibilities of perceiving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/poetry-s-work-is-not-simply-the-recording-of-inner-or-outer/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [Poetry is the work of poets, not of peoples or communities; artistic creation can never be anything but the production of an individual mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lascelles-abercrombie/poetry-is-the-work-of-poets-not-of-peoples-or-communities-artistic/) [Lascelles Abercrombie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lascelles-abercrombie/) > [Poetry is the work of the bard and of the people who inspire him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-marti/poetry-is-the-work-of-the-bard-and-of-the-people-who-inspire-him/) [Jose Marti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-marti/) > [The genius of poetry must work out its own salvation in a man; it cannot be matured by law and precept, but by sensation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-keats/the-genius-of-poetry-must-work-out-its-own-salvation-in-a-man-it/) [John Keats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-keats/) > [“The task of art is to transform what is continuously happening to us, to transform all these things into symbols, into music, into something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/the-task-of-art-is-to-transform-what-is-continuously-happening-to-us/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [The genius of poetry must work out its own salvation in a man; it cannot be matured by law and precept, but by sensation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-keats/the-genius-of-poetry-must-work-out-its-own-salvation-in-a-man-it-2/) [John Keats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-keats/) > [For me, the poetry in a work is that which makes visible the invisible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathalie-sarraute/for-me-the-poetry-in-a-work-is-that-which-makes-visible-the-invisible/) [Nathalie Sarraute](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathalie-sarraute/) > [“Many stories magnify a fact.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toba-beta/many-stories-magnify-a-fact/) [Toba Beta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toba-beta/) > [Everything made by human hands looks terrible under magnification--crude, rough, and asymmetrical. But in nature every bit of life is lovely. And the more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roman-vishniac/everything-made-by-human-hands-looks-terrible-under-magnification/) [Roman Vishniac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roman-vishniac/) > [Skepticism is like a microscope whose magnification is constantly increased: the sharp image that one begins with finally dissolves, because it is not possible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanislaw-lem/skepticism-is-like-a-microscope-whose-magnification-is-constantly/) [Stanislaw Lem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanislaw-lem/) > [“Because we are always growing, life compounds and magnifies what is already in us. If you are miserable you grow in misery and if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryant-mcgill/because-we-are-always-growing-life-compounds-and-magnifies-what-is/) [Bryant McGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryant-mcgill/) > [Short stories do not say this happened and this happened and this happened. They are a microcosm and a magnification rather than a linear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isobelle-carmody/short-stories-do-not-say-this-happened-and-this-happened-and-this/) [Isobelle Carmody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isobelle-carmody/) > [The objects of the present life fill the human eye with a false magnification because of their immediacy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wilberforce/the-objects-of-the-present-life-fill-the-human-eye-with-a-false/) [William Wilberforce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wilberforce/) > [The aeroplane. . . is not capable of unlimited magnification. It is not likely that it will ever carry more than five or seven…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/waldemar-kaempffert/the-aeroplane-is-not-capable-of-unlimited-magnification-it-is-not/) Waldemar Kaempffert > [Do not build up obstacles in your imagination. Difficulties must be studied and dealt with, but they must not be magnfiied by fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-vincent-peale/do-not-build-up-obstacles-in-your-imagination-difficulties-must-be/) [Norman Vincent Peale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-vincent-peale/) ## More by Jane Hirshfield > [I don't have a cell phone (though for years I've kept saying, "soon").](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/i-don-t-have-a-cell-phone-though-for-years-i-ve-kept-saying-soon/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [I once was asked to contribute to a mushroom poem anthology. I didn't have anything, and so instead ended up writing the introduction. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/i-once-was-asked-to-contribute-to-a-mushroom-poem-anthology-i-didn-t/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [Everything has two endings- a horse, a piece of string, a phone call. Before a life, air. And after. As silence is not silence,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/everything-has-two-endings-a-horse-a-piece-of-string-a-phone-call/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [A certain amount of housekeeping also goes on in my poems. I wash doorknobs, do dishes, mop floors, patch carpets, cook.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/a-certain-amount-of-housekeeping-also-goes-on-in-my-poems-i-wash/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [Self carries grief as a pack mule carries the side bags, being careful between the trees to leave extra room.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/self-carries-grief-as-a-pack-mule-carries-the-side-bags-being-careful/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [My job as a human being as well as a writer is to feel as thoroughly as possible the experience that I am part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/my-job-as-a-human-being-as-well-as-a-writer-is-to-feel-as-thoroughly/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [I want to preserve a certain unknowing about my own poems - perhaps because unknowing is in itself a useful poetic thirst. To move…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/i-want-to-preserve-a-certain-unknowing-about-my-own-poems-perhaps/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [Habit, laziness, and fear conspire to keep us comfortably within the familiar.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/habit-laziness-and-fear-conspire-to-keep-us-comfortably-within-the/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [In order to gain anything, you must first lose everything](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/in-order-to-gain-anything-you-must-first-lose-everything/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [The same words come from each mouth differently.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/the-same-words-come-from-each-mouth-differently/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [Metaphors think with the imagination and the senses. The hot chili peppers in them explode in the mouth and the mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/metaphors-think-with-the-imagination-and-the-senses-the-hot-chili/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [Your fate is to be yourself, both punishment and crime.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/your-fate-is-to-be-yourself-both-punishment-and-crime/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [Near even a candle, the visible heat. So it is with a person in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/near-even-a-candle-the-visible-heat-so-it-is-with-a-person-in-love/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [At some point I realized that you don't get a full human life if you try to cut off one end of it, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/at-some-point-i-realized-that-you-don-t-get-a-full-human-life-if-you/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) > [Immensity is always there, but we so often become numb to it, or deceive ourselves into thinking our own lives and selves are what's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/immensity-is-always-there-but-we-so-often-become-numb-to-it-or/) [Jane Hirshfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) [Explore all 156 Jane Hirshfield quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/) ## More Clarification quotes > [“Payne sought clarification. “Vertical or horizontal?” “Horizontal, of course.” “Sorry but I can’t help you.” “Will you pipe down for a minute? Naturally she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-lynskey/payne-sought-clarification-vertical-or-horizontal-horizontal-of/) [Ed Lynskey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-lynskey/) > [If there is something I don't know and I suspect that I need clarification and so does the viewer, I just ask for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harris-faulkner/if-there-is-something-i-don-t-know-and-i-suspect-that-i-need/) [Harris Faulkner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harris-faulkner/) > [“If you have feelings for someone, let them know. It doesn’t matter if they can be in your life or not. Maybe, it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannon-l-alder/if-you-have-feelings-for-someone-let-them-know-it-doesn-t-matter-if/) [Shannon L. Alder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannon-l-alder/) > [“An extraordinary claim requires extraordinary proof. ('On the Extraordinary: An Attempt at Clarification", Zetetic Scholar, Vol. 1, No. 1, p. 11, 1978)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcello-truzzi/an-extraordinary-claim-requires-extraordinary-proof-on-the/) Marcello Truzzi > [“QUESTIONS FOR CLARIFICATION What do you mean by…? What is your main point? How does \_\_\_\_\_\_ relate to \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_? Could you put that another…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brock/questions-for-clarification-what-do-you-mean-by-what-is-your-main/) [David Brock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brock/) > [“Hey—let’s get something straight. It’s a vampire/alien/zombie/warlock hybrid flick.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-james/hey-let-s-get-something-straight-it-s-a-vampire-alien-zombie-warlock/) [Julie James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-james/) > [Philosophy aims at the logical clarification of thoughts. Philosophy is not a body of doctrine but an activity. A philosophical work consists essentially of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-wittgenstein/philosophy-aims-at-the-logical-clarification-of-thoughts-philosophy/) [Ludwig Wittgenstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-wittgenstein/) > [One of the main tasks of adolescence is to achieve an identity--not necessarily a knowledge of who we are, but a clarification ofthe range…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/one-of-the-main-tasks-of-adolescence-is-to-achieve-an-identity-not/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Since only an individual man can possess rights, the expression "individual rights"? is a redundancy (which one has to use for purposes of clarification…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/since-only-an-individual-man-can-possess-rights-the-expression/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [This is reverent. This is Star Wars, damn it. You don't screw around with it. The things that were improv'd or added that developed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-tudyk/this-is-reverent-this-is-star-wars-damn-it-you-don-t-screw-around/) [Alan Tudyk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-tudyk/) > [The figure a poem makes. It begins in delight and ends in wisdom... in a clarification of life - not necessarily a great clarification,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-frost/the-figure-a-poem-makes-it-begins-in-delight-and-ends-in-wisdom-in-a/) [Robert Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-frost/) > [“Any expectation always needs to be clarified in detail.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-redhead/any-expectation-always-needs-to-be-clarified-in-detail/) [Steven Redhead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-redhead/) > [Choice of aim is clearly a matter of clarification of values, especially on the choice between possible options.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-edwards-deming/choice-of-aim-is-clearly-a-matter-of-clarification-of-values/) [W. Edwards Deming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-edwards-deming/) > [“I rather be a stupid person wanting clarification and answers, in order to be wiser, than be a stupid person that blindly believes the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannon-l-alder/i-rather-be-a-stupid-person-wanting-clarification-and-answers-in/) [Shannon L. Alder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannon-l-alder/) > [Our ability to make a decision about the declaration is hampered by the British government being reluctant to give us the clarification which we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-mcguinness/our-ability-to-make-a-decision-about-the-declaration-is-hampered-by/) [Martin McGuinness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-mcguinness/) Browse all 53 Clarification quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Poetry's work is the clarification and magnification of being.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jane Hirshfield" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/poetry-s-work-is-the-clarification-and-magnification-of-being/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Clarification" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/poetry-s-work-is-the-clarification-and-magnification-of-being/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5bc/jane-hirshfield-2649_clarification_poetry-s-work-is-the-clarification-and-m_3228036.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5bc/jane-hirshfield-2649_clarification_poetry-s-work-is-the-clarification-and-m_3228036.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5bc/jane-hirshfield-2649_clarification_poetry-s-work-is-the-clarification-and-m_3228036.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Poetry's work is the clarification and magnification of being.” — Jane Hirshfield", "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": "Jane Hirshfield", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-hirshfield/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Poetry's work is the clarification and...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/poetry-s-work-is-the-clarification-and-magnification-of-being/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-hirshfield/poetry-s-work-is-the-clarification-and-magnification-of-being/#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 } } ] } ```