Art Quote by Joshua Wolf Shenk

Why is it that all men who are outstanding in philosophy, poetry or the arts are melancholic?

— Aristotle

Those who have been eminent in philosophy, politics, poetry, and the arts have all had tendencies toward melancholia.

— Aristotle

“He was one of that class of men who, apart from a scientific career in which they may well have proved brilliantly successful, have…

— Marcel Proust

I am very sure that any man of common understanding may, by culture, care, attention, and labor, make himself what- ever he pleases, except…

— Anonymous

It is profound philosophy to sound the depths of feeling and distinguish traits of character. Men must be studied as deeply as books.

— Baltasar Gracian

“I appear to be embarked on the turbid waters of poetry and scholarship. And a career in poetry and knowledge is as hard to…

— Robert Lowell

Aristoteles quidem ait: 'Omnes ingeniosos melancholicos esse.' Aristotle says that all men of genius are melancholy.

— Marcus Tullius Cicero

Poets, in their way, are practical men; they are interested in results.

— Allen Tate

A great poet ought to a certain degree to rectify men's feelings... to render their feelings more sane, pure and permanent, in short, more…

— William Wordsworth

Men like to think well of themselves, and poets help them do it.

— Sheri S. Tepper

Men of great talents, whether poets or historians, seldom escape the attacks of those who, without ever favoring the world with any production of…

— Miguel de Cervantes

“We seem to be unable to resist overstating every aspect of ourselves: how long we are on the planet for, how much it matters…

— Alain de Botton