--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: With several different kinds of poetry to…" description: "\"With several different kinds of poetry to choose from, a man would decide that he would like best to be an epic poet, and he would set out, in consciou..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cd6/lascelles-abercrombie-25442_conscious_with-several-different-kinds-of-poetry-t_1763463.png" --- # With several different kinds of poetry to choose from, a… ![“With several different kinds of poetry to choose from, a man would decide that he would like best to be an epic poet, and he would set out, in conscious determination, on an epic poem.” quote by Lascelles Abercrombie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cd6/lascelles-abercrombie-25442_conscious_with-several-different-kinds-of-poetry-t_1763463.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cd6/lascelles-abercrombie-25442_conscious_with-several-different-kinds-of-poetry-t_1763463.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cd6/lascelles-abercrombie-25442_conscious_with-several-different-kinds-of-poetry-t_1763463.png) > “With several different kinds of poetry to choose from, a man would decide that he would like best to be an epic poet, and he would set out, in conscious determination, on an epic poem.” [Lascelles Abercrombie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lascelles-abercrombie/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Choosing a poetic form reflects personal ambition; committing to an epic poem shows deliberate purpose. **In simple terms:** Choosing a form shows ambition; epic poems require purpose. Key Takeaway Commit to a purposeful creative path. Themes poetry ambition determination Mood reflective motivational Type creative philosophical When to use this quote - writing a novel - career shift - artistic projects Key Concepts literary choice creative discipline goal setting Questions to Reflect On - What form matches your goals? - How will you stay determined? A Different Perspective Epic projects demand sustained effort. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Conscious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conscious/) [Determination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/determination/) [Determination Epic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/determination-epic-1713006/) [Different](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/different/) [Different kinds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/different-kinds/) [Epic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/epic/) [Epic Poem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/epic-poem-585989/) [Epic poems](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/epic-poems/) [Epic Poet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/epic-poet-427262/) [Kind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kind/) [Man Decide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man-decide-506895/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Poet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poet/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Poetry Choose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry-choose-1713003/) ## Related quotes > [A Concordance of Leaves is an epic poem of the indomitable yet fragile human spirit. Philip Metres brings Palestine and Palestinians into English with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fady-joudah/a-concordance-of-leaves-is-an-epic-poem-of-the-indomitable-yet/) [Fady Joudah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fady-joudah/) > [If a chap can't compose an epic poem while he's weaving tapestry, he had better shut up, he'll never do any good at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-morris/if-a-chap-can-t-compose-an-epic-poem-while-he-s-weaving-tapestry-he/) [William Morris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-morris/) > [“Heroic poetry tends in its simplest form to be concerned with immediate events and local heroes. A certain length of tradition is required before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-barber/heroic-poetry-tends-in-its-simplest-form-to-be-concerned-with/) [Richard Barber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-barber/) > [My secret dream is to write an epic poem. That's probably the most pretentious thing I've said.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-anderson/my-secret-dream-is-to-write-an-epic-poem-that-s-probably-the-most/) [Laurie Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-anderson/) > [Nature is a book of many pages and each page tells a fascinating story to him who learns her language. Our fertile valleys and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/nature-is-a-book-of-many-pages-and-each-page-tells-a-fascinating/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [This is a city of absolute enchantment in the literal sense of the word. It loosens all the bonds binding the traveller to his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dervla-murphy/this-is-a-city-of-absolute-enchantment-in-the-literal-sense-of-the/) [Dervla Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dervla-murphy/) > [Homer must have felt this pressure to come up with an epic poem that would sound totally new to an audience that had loved…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-carson/homer-must-have-felt-this-pressure-to-come-up-with-an-epic-poem-that/) [Anne Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-carson/) > [The epic poet collaborates with the spirit of his time in the composition of his work. That is, if he is successful; the time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lascelles-abercrombie/the-epic-poet-collaborates-with-the-spirit-of-his-time-in-the/) [Lascelles Abercrombie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lascelles-abercrombie/) > [The epic poet has behind him a tradition of matter and a tradition of style; and that is what every other poet has behind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lascelles-abercrombie/the-epic-poet-has-behind-him-a-tradition-of-matter-and-a-tradition-of/) [Lascelles Abercrombie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lascelles-abercrombie/) > [If you were going to choose a way of making your way in this world and a place to start from, you might not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-armitage/if-you-were-going-to-choose-a-way-of-making-your-way-in-this-world/) [Simon Armitage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-armitage/) > [Milton says, that the lyric poet may drink wine and live generously, but the epic poet, he who shall sing of the gods, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/milton-says-that-the-lyric-poet-may-drink-wine-and-live-generously/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [“Nothing higher can be accomplished by the epic poet thus interpreting his own time in order to serve the future. (Foreword by Frederick Ungar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/nothing-higher-can-be-accomplished-by-the-epic-poet-thus-interpreting/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [At any moment, man must decide, for better or for worse, what will be the monument of his existence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viktor-e-frankl/at-any-moment-man-must-decide-for-better-or-for-worse-what-will-be/) [Viktor E. Frankl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viktor-e-frankl/) > [Each man must for himself alone decide what is right and what is wrong, which course is patriotic and which isn't. You cannot shirk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/each-man-must-for-himself-alone-decide-what-is-right-and-what-is/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [An orderly society cannot exist if every man may decide which laws he will obey.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-f-powell-jr/an-orderly-society-cannot-exist-if-every-man-may-decide-which-laws-he/) [Lewis F. Powell, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-f-powell-jr/) ## More by Lascelles Abercrombie > [The epic poet has behind him a tradition of matter and a tradition of style; and that is what every other poet has behind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lascelles-abercrombie/the-epic-poet-has-behind-him-a-tradition-of-matter-and-a-tradition-of/) [Lascelles Abercrombie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lascelles-abercrombie/) > [No poet will ever take the written word as a substitute for the spoken word; he knows that it is on the spoken word,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lascelles-abercrombie/no-poet-will-ever-take-the-written-word-as-a-substitute-for-the/) [Lascelles Abercrombie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lascelles-abercrombie/) > [The world knows of a vast stock of epic material scattered up and down the nations; sometimes its artistic value is as extraordinary as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lascelles-abercrombie/the-world-knows-of-a-vast-stock-of-epic-material-scattered-up-and/) [Lascelles Abercrombie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lascelles-abercrombie/) > [But the development of human society does not go straight forward; and the epic process will therefore be a recurring process, the series a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lascelles-abercrombie/but-the-development-of-human-society-does-not-go-straight-forward-and/) [Lascelles Abercrombie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lascelles-abercrombie/) > [An epic is not made by piecing together a set of heroic lays, adjusting their discrepancies and making them into a continuous narrative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lascelles-abercrombie/an-epic-is-not-made-by-piecing-together-a-set-of-heroic-lays/) [Lascelles Abercrombie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lascelles-abercrombie/) > [Epic poetry exhibits life in some great symbolic attitude. It cannot strictly be said to symbolize life itself, but always some manner of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lascelles-abercrombie/epic-poetry-exhibits-life-in-some-great-symbolic-attitude-it-cannot/) [Lascelles Abercrombie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lascelles-abercrombie/) > [But the gravest difficulty, and perhaps the most important, in poetry meant solely for recitation, is the difficulty of achieving verbal beauty, or rather…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lascelles-abercrombie/but-the-gravest-difficulty-and-perhaps-the-most-important-in-poetry/) [Lascelles Abercrombie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lascelles-abercrombie/) > [The reason can only be this: heroic poetry depends on an heroic age, and an age is heroic because of what it is, not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lascelles-abercrombie/the-reason-can-only-be-this-heroic-poetry-depends-on-an-heroic-age/) [Lascelles Abercrombie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lascelles-abercrombie/) > [The balance of private good and general welfare is at the bottom of civilized morals but the morals of the Heroic Age are founded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lascelles-abercrombie/the-balance-of-private-good-and-general-welfare-is-at-the-bottom-of/) [Lascelles Abercrombie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lascelles-abercrombie/) > [How to tell students what to look for without telling them what to see is the dilemma of teaching.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lascelles-abercrombie/how-to-tell-students-what-to-look-for-without-telling-them-what-to/) [Lascelles Abercrombie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lascelles-abercrombie/) > [That is to say, epic poetry has been invented many times and independently; but, as the needs which prompted the invention have been broadly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lascelles-abercrombie/that-is-to-say-epic-poetry-has-been-invented-many-times-and/) [Lascelles Abercrombie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lascelles-abercrombie/) > [If epic poetry is a definite species, the sagas do not fall within it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lascelles-abercrombie/if-epic-poetry-is-a-definite-species-the-sagas-do-not-fall-within-it/) [Lascelles Abercrombie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lascelles-abercrombie/) > [There is only one thing which can master the perplexed stuff of epic material into unity; and that is, an ability to see in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lascelles-abercrombie/there-is-only-one-thing-which-can-master-the-perplexed-stuff-of-epic/) [Lascelles Abercrombie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lascelles-abercrombie/) > [It is more difficult to keep the attention of hearers than of readers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lascelles-abercrombie/it-is-more-difficult-to-keep-the-attention-of-hearers-than-of-readers/) [Lascelles Abercrombie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lascelles-abercrombie/) > [For the stage displays the first vigorous expression, as the natural thing and without conspicuous restraint, of private individuality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lascelles-abercrombie/for-the-stage-displays-the-first-vigorous-expression-as-the-natural/) [Lascelles Abercrombie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lascelles-abercrombie/) [Explore all 23 Lascelles Abercrombie quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lascelles-abercrombie/) ## More Conscious quotes > [Ye youths and virgins, when your generous blood Has drunk the warmth of fifteen summers, now The loves invite; now to new rapture wakes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-armstrong/ye-youths-and-virgins-when-your-generous-blood-has-drunk-the-warmth/) [John Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-armstrong/) > [Woman, in short, has an unconscious life, man a conscious life, and the genius the most conscious life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-weininger/woman-in-short-has-an-unconscious-life-man-a-conscious-life-and-the/) [Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-weininger/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? The idea is ludicrous, if it is not monstrous. It means to know that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-self-conscious-animal-the-idea-is-ludicrous/) [Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/) > [Whatever your conscious mind assumes and believes to be true, your subconscious mind will accept and bring to pass. Believe in good fortune, divine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-murphy/whatever-your-conscious-mind-assumes-and-believes-to-be-true-your/) [Joseph Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-murphy/) > [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/) > [Just as everybody has the vote including women, I think children should, because as a child is conscious of itself then it has to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-stein/just-as-everybody-has-the-vote-including-women-i-think-children/) [Gertrude Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-stein/) > [If you are not conscious of all of the different parts of yourself, the part of yourself that is the strongest will win out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-zukav/if-you-are-not-conscious-of-all-of-the-different-parts-of-yourself/) [Gary Zukav](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-zukav/) > [One of the noblest words in our language is "grace," defined as "unearned blessing." We live by grace far more than by anything else.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-elton-trueblood/one-of-the-noblest-words-in-our-language-is-grace-defined-as-unearned/) [D. Elton Trueblood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-elton-trueblood/) > [Repugnant is a creature who would squander the ability To lift an eye to heaven, conscious of his fleeting time here](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maynard-james-keenan/repugnant-is-a-creature-who-would-squander-the-ability-to-lift-an-eye/) [Maynard James Keenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maynard-james-keenan/) > [The goal of the Creator is for each entity to make a conscious choice to again seek Oneness, out of our own free will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-wilcock/the-goal-of-the-creator-is-for-each-entity-to-make-a-conscious-choice/) [David Wilcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-wilcock/) > [I know one thing: that you can do a lot of things but if you don't educate people into conscious anarchism it gets frittered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-bookchin/i-know-one-thing-that-you-can-do-a-lot-of-things-but-if-you-don-t/) [Murray Bookchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-bookchin/) > [All black people who are even minimally conscious, black people who have ever experienced Europe's technological power crusading in the vanguard of a civilizing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-nkosi/all-black-people-who-are-even-minimally-conscious-black-people-who/) [Lewis Nkosi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-nkosi/) > [ A mind conscious of right laughs at the falsehoods of rumour. \[Lat., Conscia mens recti famae mendacia risit.\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/a-mind-conscious-of-right-laughs-at-the-falsehoods-of-rumour-lat/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [I don't think my paintings are self-conscious but you feel the consciousness of them. Without them being self-conscious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-schnabel/i-don-t-think-my-paintings-are-self-conscious-but-you-feel-the/) [Julian Schnabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-schnabel/) [Browse all 3,716 Conscious quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conscious/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "With several different kinds of poetry to choose from, a man would decide that he would like best to be an epic poet, and he would set out, in conscious determination, on an epic poem.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Lascelles Abercrombie" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lascelles-abercrombie/with-several-different-kinds-of-poetry-to-choose-from-a-man-would/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Conscious" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lascelles-abercrombie/with-several-different-kinds-of-poetry-to-choose-from-a-man-would/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cd6/lascelles-abercrombie-25442_conscious_with-several-different-kinds-of-poetry-t_1763463.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cd6/lascelles-abercrombie-25442_conscious_with-several-different-kinds-of-poetry-t_1763463.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cd6/lascelles-abercrombie-25442_conscious_with-several-different-kinds-of-poetry-t_1763463.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“With several different kinds of poetry to choose from, a man would decide that he would like best to be an…” — Lascelles Abercrombie", "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": "Lascelles Abercrombie", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lascelles-abercrombie/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "With several different kinds of poetry...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lascelles-abercrombie/with-several-different-kinds-of-poetry-to-choose-from-a-man-would/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lascelles-abercrombie/with-several-different-kinds-of-poetry-to-choose-from-a-man-would/#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 } } ] } ```