---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Against barbarity, poetry can resist only…"
description: "\"Against barbarity, poetry can resist only by confirming its attachment to human fragility like a blade of grass growing on a wall while armies march by..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad9/mahmoud-darwish-6881_army_against-barbarity-poetry-can-resist-only_2867258.jpg"
---

#  Against barbarity, poetry can resist only by confirming…

![“Against barbarity, poetry can resist only by confirming its attachment to human fragility like a blade of grass growing on a wall while armies march by.” quote by Mahmoud Darwish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad9/mahmoud-darwish-6881_army_against-barbarity-poetry-can-resist-only_2867258.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad9/mahmoud-darwish-6881_army_against-barbarity-poetry-can-resist-only_2867258.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad9/mahmoud-darwish-6881_army_against-barbarity-poetry-can-resist-only_2867258.jpg)

> “Against barbarity, poetry can resist only by confirming its attachment to human fragility like a blade of grass growing on a wall while armies march by.”

[Mahmoud Darwish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahmoud-darwish/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Poetry survives by clinging to human frailty, persisting even amid war and oppression.

**In simple terms:** Poetry persists through fragility amid violence.

Key Takeaway

Use art to highlight humanity’s vulnerability.

Themes

poetry resistance human fragility war

Mood

somber defiant

Type

literary inspirational

When to use this quote

- peace activism
- literary analysis
- writing workshops
- community storytelling
- educational curricula

Key Concepts

cultural memory artistic protest ethical responsibility

Questions to Reflect On

- How can poetry inspire resistance in your community?
- What fragile aspects of humanity should we protect?

A Different Perspective

Art may be suppressed or ignored in extreme conflict.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Army](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/army/) [Attachment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attachment/) [Fragility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fragility/) [Grass growing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grass-growing/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Wall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wall/)

## Related quotes

> [“Each story wanted, no—needed—to reveal a human fragility, a human bondage which tied people to the things they did and to be the person…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-j-roberts/each-story-wanted-no-needed-to-reveal-a-human-fragility-a-human/)

[C.J. Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-j-roberts/)

> [Until man duplicates a blade of grass, nature can laugh at his so called scientific knowledge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-a-edison/until-man-duplicates-a-blade-of-grass-nature-can-laugh-at-his-so/)

[Thomas A. Edison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-a-edison/)

> [The spirit of Route 66 is in the details: every scratch on a fender, every curl of paint on a weathered billboard, every blade…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lasseter/the-spirit-of-route-66-is-in-the-details-every-scratch-on-a-fender/)

[John Lasseter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lasseter/)

> [Long and long has the grass been growing, Long and long has the rain been falling, Long has the globe been rolling round.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/long-and-long-has-the-grass-been-growing-long-and-long-has-the-rain/)

[Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/)

> [No single man makes history. History cannot be seen, just as one cannot see grass growing. Wars and revolutions, kings and Robespierres, are history's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-pasternak/no-single-man-makes-history-history-cannot-be-seen-just-as-one-cannot-2/)

[Boris Pasternak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-pasternak/)

> [It is an extraordinary and beautiful thing that God, in creation. . . works with the beauty of matter; the reality of things; the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-l-engle/it-is-an-extraordinary-and-beautiful-thing-that-god-in-creation-works/)

[Madeleine L'Engle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-l-engle/)

> [When one is overcome by this wretched, clinging desire in the world, one's sorrows increase like grass growing up after a lot of rain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gautama-buddha/when-one-is-overcome-by-this-wretched-clinging-desire-in-the-world/)

[Gautama Buddha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gautama-buddha/)

> [No single man makes history. History cannot be seen just as one cannot see grass growing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-pasternak/no-single-man-makes-history-history-cannot-be-seen-just-as-one-cannot/)

[Boris Pasternak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-pasternak/)

> [Perhaps his gloom was due to his profession, that he lived among fallen empires, and in reading these languages that had not been spoken…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/perhaps-his-gloom-was-due-to-his-profession-that-he-lived-among/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Grass is growing on the Front Bench.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-astor/grass-is-growing-on-the-front-bench/)

[Nancy Astor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-astor/)

> [I'm not irreplaceable ... I'm nothing but grass growing on the ground; when the grass dies, another one replaces it ...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chico-xavier/i-m-not-irreplaceable-i-m-nothing-but-grass-growing-on-the-ground/)

[Chico Xavier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chico-xavier/)

> [Time to move on, time to get going. What lies ahead I have no way of knowing. But under my feet, baby, grass is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-petty/time-to-move-on-time-to-get-going-what-lies-ahead-i-have-no-way-of/)

[Tom Petty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-petty/)

> [“Just fancy! One can hear and see the grass growing,' thought Levin, as he noticed wet slate-coloured aspen leaf move close to the point…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/just-fancy-one-can-hear-and-see-the-grass-growing-thought-levin-as-he/)

[Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/)

> [Today, look at the blue sky, hear the grass growing beneath your feet, inhale the scent of spring, let the fruits of the earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-ban-breathnach/today-look-at-the-blue-sky-hear-the-grass-growing-beneath-your-feet/)

[Sarah Ban Breathnach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-ban-breathnach/)

> [At home the great delight is to see the clover and grass now growing on places that were bare when we came. These small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/at-home-the-great-delight-is-to-see-the-clover-and-grass-now-growing/)

[Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/)

## More by Mahmoud Darwish

> [“I see a bird carrying me and carrying you, with us as its wings, beyond the dream, to a journey that has no end…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahmoud-darwish/i-see-a-bird-carrying-me-and-carrying-you-with-us-as-its-wings-beyond/)

[Mahmoud Darwish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahmoud-darwish/)

> [Life defined only as the opposite of death is not life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahmoud-darwish/life-defined-only-as-the-opposite-of-death-is-not-life/)

[Mahmoud Darwish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahmoud-darwish/)

> [My love, I fear the silence of your hands.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahmoud-darwish/my-love-i-fear-the-silence-of-your-hands/)

[Mahmoud Darwish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahmoud-darwish/)

> [“I'll search in mythology and archeology and in every -ology to my old name. one of the goddesses of Canaan will side with me,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahmoud-darwish/i-ll-search-in-mythology-and-archeology-and-in-every-ology-to-my-old/)

[Mahmoud Darwish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahmoud-darwish/)

> [I see what I want of Love... I see horses making the meadow dance, fifty guitars sighing, and a swarm of bees suckling the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahmoud-darwish/i-see-what-i-want-of-love-i-see-horses-making-the-meadow-dance-fifty/)

[Mahmoud Darwish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahmoud-darwish/)

> [I have learned and dismantled all the words in order to draw from them a single word: Home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahmoud-darwish/i-have-learned-and-dismantled-all-the-words-in-order-to-draw-from/)

[Mahmoud Darwish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahmoud-darwish/)

> [My homeland is not a suitcase, and I am no traveller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahmoud-darwish/my-homeland-is-not-a-suitcase-and-i-am-no-traveller/)

[Mahmoud Darwish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahmoud-darwish/)

> [Where can I free myself of the homeland in my body?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahmoud-darwish/where-can-i-free-myself-of-the-homeland-in-my-body/)

[Mahmoud Darwish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahmoud-darwish/)

> [She does not love you. Your metaphors thrill her you are her poet. But that's all there's to it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahmoud-darwish/she-does-not-love-you-your-metaphors-thrill-her-you-are-her-poet-but/)

[Mahmoud Darwish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahmoud-darwish/)

> [I've built my homeland, I've even founded my state - in my language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahmoud-darwish/i-ve-built-my-homeland-i-ve-even-founded-my-state-in-my-language/)

[Mahmoud Darwish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahmoud-darwish/)

> [“Please take your time. I want you to kill me slowly so I can write my last poem to my wife's heart. They laughed,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahmoud-darwish/please-take-your-time-i-want-you-to-kill-me-slowly-so-i-can-write-my/)

[Mahmoud Darwish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahmoud-darwish/)

> [I want to find a language that transforms language itself into steel for the spirit--a language to use against these sparkling insects, these jets.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahmoud-darwish/i-want-to-find-a-language-that-transforms-language-itself-into-steel/)

[Mahmoud Darwish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahmoud-darwish/)

> [Nothing, nothing justifies terrorism,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahmoud-darwish/nothing-nothing-justifies-terrorism/)

[Mahmoud Darwish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahmoud-darwish/)

> [Sometimes I feel as if I am read before I write. When I write a poem about my mother, Palestinians think my mother is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahmoud-darwish/sometimes-i-feel-as-if-i-am-read-before-i-write-when-i-write-a-poem/)

[Mahmoud Darwish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahmoud-darwish/)

> [... For me it is essential, essential for the poet to have a new toast, new songs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahmoud-darwish/for-me-it-is-essential-essential-for-the-poet-to-have-a-new-toast-new/)

[Mahmoud Darwish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahmoud-darwish/)

[Explore all 94 Mahmoud Darwish quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahmoud-darwish/)

## More Army quotes

> [There are no more worlds to conquer!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-the-great/there-are-no-more-worlds-to-conquer/)

[Alexander the Great](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-the-great/)

> [“In American terms, the accomplishment of Genghis Khan might be understood if the United States, instead of being created by a group of educated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-weatherford/in-american-terms-the-accomplishment-of-genghis-khan-might-be/)

[Jack Weatherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-weatherford/)

> [Every army in the history of the world has always had some deserters, usually much greater than we have today, because once again every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-hilferty/every-army-in-the-history-of-the-world-has-always-had-some-deserters/)

[Bryan Hilferty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-hilferty/)

> [It is the rule in war, if our forces are ten to the enemy's one, to surround him; if five to one, to attack…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sun-tzu/it-is-the-rule-in-war-if-our-forces-are-ten-to-the-enemy-s-one-to/)

[Sun Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sun-tzu/)

> [The surprise of an army is now next to an impossibility. ... Prearranged surprises are rare and difficult because in order to plan one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-henri-jomini/the-surprise-of-an-army-is-now-next-to-an-impossibility-prearranged/)

[Antoine-Henri Jomini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-henri-jomini/)

> [I just read an article about how young American males feel uncomfortable appearing naked in front of each other in locker rooms. That was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-ivory/i-just-read-an-article-about-how-young-american-males-feel/)

[James Ivory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-ivory/)

> [ I can't imagine that I would be asked that by the president-elect \[Donald Trump\], or then-president \[Barack Obama\]. But it's - I'm very clear.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-mattis/i-can-t-imagine-that-i-would-be-asked-that-by-the-president-elect/)

[James Mattis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-mattis/)

> [Holy shadows of the dead, I'm not to blame for your cruel and bitter fate, but the accursed rivalry which brought sister nations and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-the-great/holy-shadows-of-the-dead-i-m-not-to-blame-for-your-cruel-and-bitter/)

[Alexander the Great](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-the-great/)

> [“The most important lesson that came out of Vietnam for me was that Marines take care of Marines.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-clancy/the-most-important-lesson-that-came-out-of-vietnam-for-me-was-that/)

[Tom Clancy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-clancy/)

> [One of our great allies at present is the Church itself. Do not misunderstand me. I do not mean the Church as we see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/one-of-our-great-allies-at-present-is-the-church-itself-do-not/)

[C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/)

> [I have real strong feelings about our troops and support them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-fichtner/i-have-real-strong-feelings-about-our-troops-and-support-them/)

[William Fichtner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-fichtner/)

> [Personally, I don't really have a set style or look. It's pretty much what I feel like wearing that day, from a floral-print dress…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shay-mitchell/personally-i-don-t-really-have-a-set-style-or-look-it-s-pretty-much/)

[Shay Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shay-mitchell/)

> [Growing up with a parent in the army, I saw firsthand the challenges our service members face when transitioning to new jobs after time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharice-davids/growing-up-with-a-parent-in-the-army-i-saw-firsthand-the-challenges/)

[Sharice Davids](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharice-davids/)

> [Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-prescott/don-t-fire-until-you-see-the-whites-of-their-eyes/)

[William H. Prescott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-prescott/)

> [Thanks to all members of the military around the world for giving me the ultimate motivation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalya-neidhart/thanks-to-all-members-of-the-military-around-the-world-for-giving-me/)

[Natalya Neidhart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalya-neidhart/)

[Browse all 3,919 Army quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/army/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Against barbarity, poetry can resist only by confirming its attachment to human fragility like a blade of grass growing on a wall while armies march by.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Mahmoud Darwish"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahmoud-darwish/against-barbarity-poetry-can-resist-only-by-confirming-its-attachment/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Army"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahmoud-darwish/against-barbarity-poetry-can-resist-only-by-confirming-its-attachment/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad9/mahmoud-darwish-6881_army_against-barbarity-poetry-can-resist-only_2867258.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad9/mahmoud-darwish-6881_army_against-barbarity-poetry-can-resist-only_2867258.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad9/mahmoud-darwish-6881_army_against-barbarity-poetry-can-resist-only_2867258.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Against barbarity, poetry can resist only by confirming its attachment to human fragility like a blade of…” — Mahmoud Darwish",
                "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": "Mahmoud Darwish",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahmoud-darwish/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Against barbarity, poetry can resist only...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahmoud-darwish/against-barbarity-poetry-can-resist-only-by-confirming-its-attachment/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahmoud-darwish/against-barbarity-poetry-can-resist-only-by-confirming-its-attachment/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
