--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What poetry is asking us to accept can be…" description: "\"What poetry is asking us to accept can be difficult. Our proximity to our mortality, the fragility of our existence, how close we live in every moment ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cbc/matthew-zapruder-12762_abyss_what-poetry-is-asking-us-to-accept-can-b_1991375.jpg" --- # What poetry is asking us to accept can be difficult. Our… ![“What poetry is asking us to accept can be difficult. Our proximity to our mortality, the fragility of our existence, how close we live in every moment to nameless abysses, and the way language itself is beautifully, tragically, thrillingly insufficient...these are some of the engines that drive…” quote by Matthew Zapruder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cbc/matthew-zapruder-12762_abyss_what-poetry-is-asking-us-to-accept-can-b_1991375.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cbc/matthew-zapruder-12762_abyss_what-poetry-is-asking-us-to-accept-can-b_1991375.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cbc/matthew-zapruder-12762_abyss_what-poetry-is-asking-us-to-accept-can-b_1991375.jpg) > “What poetry is asking us to accept can be difficult. Our proximity to our mortality, the fragility of our existence, how close we live in every moment to nameless abysses, and the way language itself is beautifully, tragically, thrillingly insufficient...these are some of the engines that drive the poem. It's natural to want to turn away from these things. But we have to face them, as best we can, at least sometimes. Poetry can help us in that nearly impossible work.” [Matthew Zapruder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-zapruder/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Poetry confronts mortality, fragility, and language’s limits, urging us to face existential anxieties rather than flee. **In simple terms:** Poetry forces us to face death and language limits. Key Takeaway Embrace discomfort, let poetry guide you. Themes mortality language existential art reflection Mood melancholic thoughtful inspired Type reflective inspirational When to use this quote - grief counseling - creative writing workshops - personal journaling - mindfulness practice Key Concepts philosophy aesthetics psychology Questions to Reflect On - How do you respond when language fails you? - What does confronting mortality through poetry reveal about you? A Different Perspective Poetry may not provide concrete answers, only deeper questions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Abyss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abyss/) [Best poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/best-poetry/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Every moment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/every-moment/) [Existence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existence/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Moments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moments/) [Mortality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mortality/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [“What is poetry? you ask, while fixing your blue pupil on mine. What is poetry! And you are asking me? 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I mean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-zapruder/somewhere-back-a-whiskey-or-so-ago-i-wrote-that-thinking-was-a-real/) [Matthew Zapruder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-zapruder/) > [If freedom in the imagination is a privilege, it's one I believe everyone should have, as a basic human right. I also believe that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-zapruder/if-freedom-in-the-imagination-is-a-privilege-it-s-one-i-believe/) [Matthew Zapruder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-zapruder/) > [So for whatever reason those short lines just felt right to me, in my physical self. They were right for the movement of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-zapruder/so-for-whatever-reason-those-short-lines-just-felt-right-to-me-in-my/) [Matthew Zapruder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-zapruder/) > [I wanted to write not exclusively for (or against) poets or scholars, though many of them are people, too! 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It was like suddenly an abyss opened at my feet - I was standing on nothing.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-okri/we-never-think-that-our-mothers-will-die-it-was-like-suddenly-an/) [Ben Okri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-okri/) > [Early on a difficult climb, especially a solo climb, you’re hyper-aware of the abyss pulling at your back, constantly feeling its call, its immense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-krakauer/early-on-a-difficult-climb-especially-a-solo-climb-you-re-hyper-aware/) [Jon Krakauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-krakauer/) > [“The whole organization seemed to be in free fall, indulging in a collective fantasy in which experienced colleagues refused to admit that their every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-whole-organization-seemed-to-be-in-free-fall-indulging-in-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Adam became so proud that he wished to become God and died for his pride; the Son of God humbled Himself unto death, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-of-kronstadt/adam-became-so-proud-that-he-wished-to-become-god-and-died-for-his/) [John of Kronstadt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-of-kronstadt/) > [The cradle rocks above an abyss, and common sense tells us that our existence is but a brief crack of light between two eternities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-nabokov/the-cradle-rocks-above-an-abyss-and-common-sense-tells-us-that-our/) [Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) > [In the end things must be as they are and have always been--the great things remain for the great, the abysses for the profound,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/in-the-end-things-must-be-as-they-are-and-have-always-been-the-great/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [I admire the Elsie Tanners and Barbara Windsors of the world: people who have crawled back from the abyss. I'm quite camp in that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-eclair/i-admire-the-elsie-tanners-and-barbara-windsors-of-the-world-people/) [Jenny Eclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-eclair/) > [I've been to unpretty places with the roles I've played, and I'm attracted to reckless abandon. I like being taken to the edge of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rhys-ifans/i-ve-been-to-unpretty-places-with-the-roles-i-ve-played-and-i-m/) [Rhys Ifans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rhys-ifans/) > [I look into my heart and see the abyss looking back at me.' 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Red Spider White…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-aldiss/we-belong-to-an-age-where-apocalypse-is-our-daily-bread-coffee-s/) [Brian Aldiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-aldiss/) [Browse all 625 Abyss quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abyss/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "What poetry is asking us to accept can be difficult. Our proximity to our mortality, the fragility of our existence, how close we live in every moment to nameless abysses, and the way language itself is beautifully, tragically, thrillingly insufficient...these are some of the engines that drive the poem. It's natural to want to turn away from these things. But we have to face them, as best we can, at least sometimes. 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