--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: From authors whom I read more than once I…" description: "\"“From authors whom I read more than once I learn to value the weight of words and to delight in their meter and cadence -- in Gibbon's polyphonic count..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/629/lewis-h-lapham-7190_books_from-authors-whom-i-read-more-than-once_2724120.jpg" --- # From authors whom I read more than once I learn to value… ![“From authors whom I read more than once I learn to value the weight of words and to delight in their meter and cadence -- in Gibbon's polyphonic counterpoint and Guedalla's command of the subjunctive, in Mailer's hyperbole and Dillard's similes, in Twain's invectives and burlesques with which he…” quote by Lewis H. Lapham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/629/lewis-h-lapham-7190_books_from-authors-whom-i-read-more-than-once_2724120.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/629/lewis-h-lapham-7190_books_from-authors-whom-i-read-more-than-once_2724120.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/629/lewis-h-lapham-7190_books_from-authors-whom-i-read-more-than-once_2724120.jpg) > ““From authors whom I read more than once I learn to value the weight of words and to delight in their meter and cadence -- in Gibbon's polyphonic counterpoint and Guedalla's command of the subjunctive, in Mailer's hyperbole and Dillard's similes, in Twain's invectives and burlesques with which he set the torch of his ferocious wit to the hospitality tents of the world's colossal humbug . . . I know no other way out of what is both the maze of the eternal present and the prison of the self except with a string of words." - from Harper's Notebook, November 2010”” [Lewis H. Lapham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-h-lapham/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The author celebrates the power of precise, musical language and its ability to free us from self‑imposed mental traps. **In simple terms:** Words with rhythm and meaning can liberate us. Key Takeaway Cultivate careful, lyrical writing. Themes language creativity freedom Mood reflective inspired Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - writing workshops - public speaking - literary analysis - personal journaling Key Concepts rhetoric syntax style Questions to Reflect On - How does rhythm affect your comprehension? - Can style replace substance? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on form can obscure clarity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Dillard Similes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dillard-similes-2905280/) [Similes Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/similes-twain-2905277/) [Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/twain/) [Twain Invectives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/twain-invectives-2905278/) [Words Delight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/words-delight-2905279/) ## Related quotes > [From authors whom I read more than once I learn to value the weight of words and to delight in their meter and cadence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-h-lapham/from-authors-whom-i-read-more-than-once-i-learn-to-value-the-weight/) [Lewis H. Lapham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-h-lapham/) > [“Your words were found, and I ate them. Your words became a delight to me and the joy of my heart. 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But when to the place Of deep loving (Starlight at midnight) At…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-spencer/words-were-his-delight-hers-a-gay-gracefulness-of-dancing-and-moving/) [Theodore Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-spencer/) > [“The truth is a fragile thing, but a lie, well told, can live forever. “ — Mark Twain”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-nugent/the-truth-is-a-fragile-thing-but-a-lie-well-told-can-live-forever/) [Rebecca Nugent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-nugent/) > [“If my name were Mark Twain, I’d write under the pseudonym “Samuel Clemens.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/if-my-name-were-mark-twain-i-d-write-under-the-pseudonym-samuel/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > ['Don't go around saying the world owes you a living. The world owes you nothing. It was here first.' 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Lapham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-h-lapham/) > [Power broken into a thousand pieces can be hidden and disowned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-h-lapham/power-broken-into-a-thousand-pieces-can-be-hidden-and-disowned/) [Lewis H. Lapham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-h-lapham/) [Explore all 93 Lewis H. 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