--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The one who writes a poem writes it above…" description: "\"The one who writes a poem writes it above all because verse writing is an extraordinary accelerator of conscience, of thinking, of comprehending the un..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e27/joseph-brodsky-1225_conscience_the-one-who-writes-a-poem-writes-it-abov_2355265.png" --- # The one who writes a poem writes it above all because… ![“The one who writes a poem writes it above all because verse writing is an extraordinary accelerator of conscience, of thinking, of comprehending the universe.” quote by Joseph Brodsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e27/joseph-brodsky-1225_conscience_the-one-who-writes-a-poem-writes-it-abov_2355265.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e27/joseph-brodsky-1225_conscience_the-one-who-writes-a-poem-writes-it-abov_2355265.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e27/joseph-brodsky-1225_conscience_the-one-who-writes-a-poem-writes-it-abov_2355265.png) > “The one who writes a poem writes it above all because verse writing is an extraordinary accelerator of conscience, of thinking, of comprehending the universe.” [Joseph Brodsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-brodsky/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Writing poetry sharpens moral and expands understanding, acting as a powerful tool for self‑reflection and universal insight. **In simple terms:** Poetry sharpens mind and expands understanding. Key Takeaway Write poetry to deepen thought. Themes creativity consciousness knowledge self‑reflection Mood inspirational introspective Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - personal growth - educational practice - creative writing Key Concepts cognitive acceleration artistic expression Questions to Reflect On - What does poetry reveal about your inner world? - How can verse aid problem solving? A Different Perspective Poetry may not suit all learning styles. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Conscience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conscience/) [Poem Writes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poem-writes-2652641/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Universe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/universe/) [Verse Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/verse-writing-784600/) [Writes Poem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writes-poem-471338/) [Writes Verse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writes-verse-5398088/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Writing Extraordinary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-extraordinary-1723255/) ## Related quotes > [One who writes a poem writes it because the language prompts, or simply dictates, the next line.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-brodsky/one-who-writes-a-poem-writes-it-because-the-language-prompts-or/) [Joseph Brodsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-brodsky/) > [“...today, I’m writing about the extraordinary; those ‘moments’ in life that reach us, and change us. Those moments take place all the time, really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dianna-hardy/today-i-m-writing-about-the-extraordinary-those-moments-in-life-that/) [Dianna Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dianna-hardy/) > [When talent fails, indignation writes the verse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juvenal/when-talent-fails-indignation-writes-the-verse/) [Juvenal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juvenal/) > [What I try to do is to go into a poem - and one writes them, of course, poem by poem - to go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-muldoon/what-i-try-to-do-is-to-go-into-a-poem-and-one-writes-them-of-course/) [Paul Muldoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-muldoon/) > [Narrative nonfiction was not my forte. I always wanted to let my imagination run free, and the facts sometimes got in the way. At…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-florian/narrative-nonfiction-was-not-my-forte-i-always-wanted-to-let-my/) [Douglas Florian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-florian/) > [“At one time I was weary of verse writing, and wanted to give it up. At another time I was determined to be a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matsuo-basho/at-one-time-i-was-weary-of-verse-writing-and-wanted-to-give-it-up-at/) [Matsuo Bashō](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matsuo-basho/) > [What I do say is that I can write verse, and that the writing of verse in strict form is the best possible training…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/what-i-do-say-is-that-i-can-write-verse-and-that-the-writing-of-verse/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [“A friend of mine has a ritual: He writes a poem every day with his morning coffee.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arianna-huffington/a-friend-of-mine-has-a-ritual-he-writes-a-poem-every-day-with-his/) [Arianna Huffington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arianna-huffington/) > [One writes a poem when one is so taken up by an emotional concept that one is unable to remain silent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-dobyns/one-writes-a-poem-when-one-is-so-taken-up-by-an-emotional-concept/) [Stephen Dobyns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-dobyns/) > [“Whether if you're a beginner poet or an experienced poet, poets just as other writers would like to have more readers enjoy their work.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reynaldo-casison/whether-if-you-re-a-beginner-poet-or-an-experienced-poet-poets-just/) [Reynaldo Casison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reynaldo-casison/) > [No, I think that a person writes a poem because they have an inner urge of something that they want to express, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-ornstein/no-i-think-that-a-person-writes-a-poem-because-they-have-an-inner/) [Leo Ornstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-ornstein/) > [When a woman writes you a poem, she spends time with the gods on your behalf.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aja-monet/when-a-woman-writes-you-a-poem-she-spends-time-with-the-gods-on-your/) [Aja Monet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aja-monet/) > [“Information paints no picture, sings no song, and writes no poem.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-f-georgy/information-paints-no-picture-sings-no-song-and-writes-no-poem/) [R.F. Georgy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-f-georgy/) > [“Knowledge without conscience is but the ruin of the soul.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabelaise/knowledge-without-conscience-is-but-the-ruin-of-the-soul/) [Rabelaise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabelaise/) > [Self-respect and a clear conscience are powerful components of integrity and are the basis for enriching your relationships with others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-waitley/self-respect-and-a-clear-conscience-are-powerful-components-of/) [Denis Waitley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-waitley/) ## More by Joseph Brodsky > [As long as the state permits itself to interfere in the affairs of literature, literature has the right to interfere with the affairs of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-brodsky/as-long-as-the-state-permits-itself-to-interfere-in-the-affairs-of/) [Joseph Brodsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-brodsky/) > [For some odd reason, the expression 'death of a poet' always sounds somewhat more concrete than 'life of a poet.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-brodsky/for-some-odd-reason-the-expression-death-of-a-poet-always-sounds/) [Joseph Brodsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-brodsky/) > [A poet is a combination of an instrument and a human being in one person, with the former gradually taking over the latter. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-brodsky/a-poet-is-a-combination-of-an-instrument-and-a-human-being-in-one/) [Joseph Brodsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-brodsky/) > [On the whole, love comes with the speed of light; separation, with that of sound.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-brodsky/on-the-whole-love-comes-with-the-speed-of-light-separation-with-that/) [Joseph Brodsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-brodsky/) > [“In the business of writing, what one accumulates is not experience but uncertainties.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-brodsky/in-the-business-of-writing-what-one-accumulates-is-not-experience-but/) [Joseph Brodsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-brodsky/) > [I haven't shifted language. I'm writing in English because I like it. I'm a sucker for the language, but the good old poems I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-brodsky/i-haven-t-shifted-language-i-m-writing-in-english-because-i-like-it-i/) [Joseph Brodsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-brodsky/) > [Perhaps the best proof of the Almighty's existence is that we never know when we are to die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-brodsky/perhaps-the-best-proof-of-the-almighty-s-existence-is-that-we-never/) [Joseph Brodsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-brodsky/) > [I grew up in the sort of cultural milieu that always regarded conversations about the political discourse as tremendously low-brow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-brodsky/i-grew-up-in-the-sort-of-cultural-milieu-that-always-regarded/) [Joseph Brodsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-brodsky/) > [“What gets left of a man amounts to a part. To his spoken part. To a part of speech”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-brodsky/what-gets-left-of-a-man-amounts-to-a-part-to-his-spoken-part-to-a/) [Joseph Brodsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-brodsky/) > [“secrecy is a hotbed of vanity”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-brodsky/secrecy-is-a-hotbed-of-vanity/) [Joseph Brodsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-brodsky/) > [“The instinctive preference was to read rather than to act. No wonder our actual lives were more or less a shambles”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-brodsky/the-instinctive-preference-was-to-read-rather-than-to-act-no-wonder/) [Joseph Brodsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-brodsky/) > [Americans have been tremendously fortunate in poetry, regarding both the quantity and quality of poetry produced. Unfortunately, it remains in schools and universities; it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-brodsky/americans-have-been-tremendously-fortunate-in-poetry-regarding-both/) [Joseph Brodsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-brodsky/) > [Life—the way it really is—is a battle not between good and bad, but between bad and worse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-brodsky/life-the-way-it-really-is-is-a-battle-not-between-good-and-bad-but/) [Joseph Brodsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-brodsky/) > [Poems, novels - these things belong to the nation, to the culture, and the people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-brodsky/poems-novels-these-things-belong-to-the-nation-to-the-culture-and-the/) [Joseph Brodsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-brodsky/) > [“If there is any substitute for love, it is memory.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-brodsky/if-there-is-any-substitute-for-love-it-is-memory/) [Joseph Brodsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-brodsky/) [Explore all 264 Joseph Brodsky quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-brodsky/) ## More Conscience quotes > [Self-respect and a clear conscience are powerful components of integrity and are the basis for enriching your relationships with others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-waitley/self-respect-and-a-clear-conscience-are-powerful-components-of/) [Denis Waitley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-waitley/) > [“Knowledge without conscience is but the ruin of the soul.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabelaise/knowledge-without-conscience-is-but-the-ruin-of-the-soul/) [Rabelaise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabelaise/) > [Writing adds up to the conscience of our times.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-firrell/writing-adds-up-to-the-conscience-of-our-times/) [Martin Firrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-firrell/) > [My conscience is really active. So I feel bad about spending excess amount of money on things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/syd/my-conscience-is-really-active-so-i-feel-bad-about-spending-excess/) [Syd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/syd/) > [Let us be thankful for health and competence, and, above all, for a quiet conscience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/izaak-walton/let-us-be-thankful-for-health-and-competence-and-above-all-for-a/) [Izaak Walton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/izaak-walton/) > [Making money doesn't oblige people to forfeit their honor or their conscience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-de-rothschild/making-money-doesn-t-oblige-people-to-forfeit-their-honor-or-their/) [Guy de Rothschild](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-de-rothschild/) > [“If we cannot be happy and powerful and prey on others, we invent conscience and prey on ourselves.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/if-we-cannot-be-happy-and-powerful-and-prey-on-others-we-invent/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [The God in whose hands are all our days and ways, did cast into my hand one day a book of Martin Luthers; it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bunyan/the-god-in-whose-hands-are-all-our-days-and-ways-did-cast-into-my/) [John Bunyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bunyan/) > [My morals are important to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-parrish/my-morals-are-important-to-me/) [Hunter Parrish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-parrish/) > [Being tolerant does not mean that I share another ones belief. But it does mean that I acknowledge another ones right to believe, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viktor-frankl/being-tolerant-does-not-mean-that-i-share-another-ones-belief-but-it/) [Viktor Frankl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viktor-frankl/) > [Never can true courage dwell with them, Who, playing tricks with conscience, dare not look At their own vices.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-taylor-coleridge/never-can-true-courage-dwell-with-them-who-playing-tricks-with/) [Samuel Taylor Coleridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-taylor-coleridge/) > [In presenting a mathematical argument the great thing is to give the educated reader the chance to catch on at once to the momentary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-edensor-littlewood/in-presenting-a-mathematical-argument-the-great-thing-is-to-give-the/) [John Edensor Littlewood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-edensor-littlewood/) > [I've worked with people who are much further to the left than I am and much further to the right than I am. At…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hanks/i-ve-worked-with-people-who-are-much-further-to-the-left-than-i-am/) [Tom Hanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hanks/) > [If all the world hated you and believed you wicked, while your own conscience approved of you and absolved you from guilt, you would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/if-all-the-world-hated-you-and-believed-you-wicked-while-your-own/) [Charlotte Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [ \[D\]on't grow old. With age comes caution, which is another name for cowardice… Whatever else you do in life, don't cultivate a conscience. Without… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hesketh-pearson/d-on-t-grow-old-with-age-comes-caution-which-is-another-name-for/) [Hesketh Pearson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hesketh-pearson/) [Browse all 3,490 Conscience quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conscience/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The one who writes a poem writes it above all because verse writing is an extraordinary accelerator of conscience, of thinking, of comprehending the universe.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Joseph Brodsky" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-brodsky/the-one-who-writes-a-poem-writes-it-above-all-because-verse-writing/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Conscience" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-brodsky/the-one-who-writes-a-poem-writes-it-above-all-because-verse-writing/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e27/joseph-brodsky-1225_conscience_the-one-who-writes-a-poem-writes-it-abov_2355265.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e27/joseph-brodsky-1225_conscience_the-one-who-writes-a-poem-writes-it-abov_2355265.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e27/joseph-brodsky-1225_conscience_the-one-who-writes-a-poem-writes-it-abov_2355265.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The one who writes a poem writes it above all because verse writing is an extraordinary accelerator of…” — Joseph Brodsky", "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": "Joseph Brodsky", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-brodsky/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The one who writes a poem...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-brodsky/the-one-who-writes-a-poem-writes-it-above-all-because-verse-writing/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-brodsky/the-one-who-writes-a-poem-writes-it-above-all-because-verse-writing/#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 } } ] } ```