--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The creative person, the person who moves…" description: "\"The creative person, the person who moves from an irrational source of power, has to face the fact that this power antagonizes. Under all the superfici..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a5c/may-sarton-897_creative_the-creative-person-the-person-who-moves_1217318.jpg" --- # The creative person, the person who moves from an… ![“The creative person, the person who moves from an irrational source of power, has to face the fact that this power antagonizes. Under all the superficial praise of the creative is the desire to kill. It is the old war between the mystic and the nonmystic, a war to the death.” quote by May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a5c/may-sarton-897_creative_the-creative-person-the-person-who-moves_1217318.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a5c/may-sarton-897_creative_the-creative-person-the-person-who-moves_1217318.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a5c/may-sarton-897_creative_the-creative-person-the-person-who-moves_1217318.jpg) > “The creative person, the person who moves from an irrational source of power, has to face the fact that this power antagonizes. Under all the superficial praise of the creative is the desire to kill. It is the old war between the mystic and the nonmystic, a war to the death.” [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Creative people face inner conflict between mystical inspiration and rational critique, leading to a destructive desire. **In simple terms:** Creativity can involve inner struggle. Key Takeaway Balance intuition with analysis. Themes creativity conflict psychology Mood thoughtful introspective Type philosophical psychological When to use this quote - artistic process - writing sessions - mental health coping Key Concepts mystic vs rational inner war Questions to Reflect On - How do you reconcile intuition and reason? - Can conflict fuel innovation? A Different Perspective Not all creators experience this tension. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Creative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creative/) [Creative person](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creative-person/) [Creativity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creativity/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Desire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desire/) [Faces](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faces/) [Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [Irrational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/irrational/) [Mystic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mystic/) [Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power/) [Praise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/praise/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) ## Related quotes > [You might say that a creative person is a person who simply has a desire to have something, to add something to the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-andre/you-might-say-that-a-creative-person-is-a-person-who-simply-has-a/) [Carl Andre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-andre/) > [Acting runs through my blood. There is some sort of creative desire to express myself and I would need that outlet. Otherwise I would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-kidman/acting-runs-through-my-blood-there-is-some-sort-of-creative-desire-to/) [Nicole Kidman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-kidman/) > [My career aspirations as an actor have always been driven foremost by the creative desire to be versatile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-smits/my-career-aspirations-as-an-actor-have-always-been-driven-foremost-by/) [Jimmy Smits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-smits/) > [Being creative is not so much the desire to do something as the listening to that which wants to be done: the dictation of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anni-albers/being-creative-is-not-so-much-the-desire-to-do-something-as-the/) Anni Albers > [Three and a half years in L.A. was enough for me. I would love to go back for short bursts if a film opportunity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darren-boyd/three-and-a-half-years-in-l-a-was-enough-for-me-i-would-love-to-go/) [Darren Boyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darren-boyd/) > [There is a certain kind of fire that happens when you fall in love with a musician. I guess you understand one another because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dianne-reeves/there-is-a-certain-kind-of-fire-that-happens-when-you-fall-in-love/) [Dianne Reeves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dianne-reeves/) > [A person's a person, no matter how tall. (P.S. I am tall)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/citlalli-v/a-person-s-a-person-no-matter-how-tall-p-s-i-am-tall/) Citlalli V > [We can be human only together. A person is a person to other persons.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/desmond-tutu/we-can-be-human-only-together-a-person-is-a-person-to-other-persons/) [Desmond Tutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/desmond-tutu/) > [A person is a person through other persons. None of us comes into the world fully formed. We would not know how to think,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/desmond-tutu/a-person-is-a-person-through-other-persons-none-of-us-comes-into-the/) [Desmond Tutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/desmond-tutu/) > [I love the idea that 'a person is a person no matter how small'.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-carrey/i-love-the-idea-that-a-person-is-a-person-no-matter-how-small/) [Jim Carrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-carrey/) > [I believe in person to person. Every person is Christ to me, and since there is only one Jesus, that person is the one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mother-teresa/i-believe-in-person-to-person-every-person-is-christ-to-me-and-since/) [Mother Teresa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mother-teresa/) > [An irresponsible person is a person who makes vague promises, then breaks his word, blames it on circumstances and expects other people to forgive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/an-irresponsible-person-is-a-person-who-makes-vague-promises-then/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [In person, I am a person who doesn't talk about myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/akhil-akkineni/in-person-i-am-a-person-who-doesn-t-talk-about-myself/) [Akhil Akkineni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/akhil-akkineni/) > [To the world you may be one person, but to one person you may be the world. ~unknown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-the-world-you-may-be-one-person-but-to-one-person-you-may-be-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Happy person is not a person in a certain set of circumstances, but rather a person with a certain set of attitudes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-downs/happy-person-is-not-a-person-in-a-certain-set-of-circumstances-but/) [Hugh Downs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-downs/) ## More by May Sarton > [“I felt pain like an assault, The old pain again When the world thrusts itself inside, When we have to take in the outside,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/i-felt-pain-like-an-assault-the-old-pain-again-when-the-world-thrusts/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [Most people have to talk so they won't hear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/most-people-have-to-talk-so-they-won-t-hear/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [People who cannot feel punish those who do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/people-who-cannot-feel-punish-those-who-do/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [This suspension of one's own reality, this being entirely alone in a strange city (at times I wondered if I had lost the power…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/this-suspension-of-one-s-own-reality-this-being-entirely-alone-in-a/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [One must think like a hero to behave like a merely decent human being.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/one-must-think-like-a-hero-to-behave-like-a-merely-decent-human-being/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [Real joy is becoming exceedingly rare among artists of any kind. And I have an idea that those who can and do communicate it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/real-joy-is-becoming-exceedingly-rare-among-artists-of-any-kind-and-i/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [For to be desperate is to discover strength. / We die of comfort and by conflict live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/for-to-be-desperate-is-to-discover-strength-we-die-of-comfort-and-by/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [“I see you with that shell Held to your sensitive abstracted ear, Hunting the ocean’s rumor till you hear it well, Until you can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/i-see-you-with-that-shell-held-to-your-sensitive-abstracted-ear/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [There is a wilder solitude in winter When every sense is pricked alive and keen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/there-is-a-wilder-solitude-in-winter-when-every-sense-is-pricked/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [I long for the bulbs to arrive, for the early autumn chores are melancholy, but the planting of bulbs is the work of hope…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/i-long-for-the-bulbs-to-arrive-for-the-early-autumn-chores-are/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [Why is it that people who cannot show feeling presume that that is a strength and not a weakness?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/why-is-it-that-people-who-cannot-show-feeling-presume-that-that-is-a/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [Innocence is not pure so much as pleased, Always expectant, bright-eyed, self-enclosed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/innocence-is-not-pure-so-much-as-pleased-always-expectant-bright-eyed/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [I have written every poem, every novel, for the same purpose-to find out what I think, to know where I stand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/i-have-written-every-poem-every-novel-for-the-same-purpose-to-find/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [For art is order, but it is born out of the chaos of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/for-art-is-order-but-it-is-born-out-of-the-chaos-of-life/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [all great people are humble because great people have great work and are humbled by the largeness of their dreams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/all-great-people-are-humble-because-great-people-have-great-work-and/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) [Explore all 336 May Sarton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) ## More Creative quotes > [An artist's creative energy is ephemeral as a flower. It blooms and soon dies. No artist is great forever. Personally, I think I reached…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-ki-duk/an-artist-s-creative-energy-is-ephemeral-as-a-flower-it-blooms-and/) [Kim Ki-duk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-ki-duk/) > [When you're being truly creative, time stands still, and you enter a dimension that can carry you beyond the ordinariness of everyday life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denise-linn/when-you-re-being-truly-creative-time-stands-still-and-you-enter-a/) [Denise Linn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denise-linn/) > [I started off playing by ear, and being around a bunch of musicians and playing in the streets and in the different parades and,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/troy-andrews/i-started-off-playing-by-ear-and-being-around-a-bunch-of-musicians/) [Troy Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/troy-andrews/) > [Can you imagine any better example of divine creative accomplishment that the consummate flying machine that is a bird? The skeleton, very flexible and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-murchie/can-you-imagine-any-better-example-of-divine-creative-accomplishment/) [Guy Murchie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-murchie/) > [Money is only used for two things. One, it's to make you comfortable, and the more comfortable you are the more creative you will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-proctor/money-is-only-used-for-two-things-one-it-s-to-make-you-comfortable/) [Bob Proctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-proctor/) > [Beware of self-indulgence. The romance surrounding the writing profession carries several myths: that one must suffer in order to be creative; that one must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brin/beware-of-self-indulgence-the-romance-surrounding-the-writing/) [David Brin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brin/) > [I can't let fear kill my creative brain. Fear is the killer. Your bad choices come from fear. And I'm constantly combating fear. I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-m-chu/i-can-t-let-fear-kill-my-creative-brain-fear-is-the-killer-your-bad/) [Jon M. Chu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-m-chu/) > [Many humanists have argued that happiness involves a combination of hedonism and creative moral development; that an exuberant life fuses excellence and enjoyment, meaning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-kurtz/many-humanists-have-argued-that-happiness-involves-a-combination-of/) [Paul Kurtz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-kurtz/) > [The creative strength is good enough and deep enough to bring itself to flower and to grow in spite of this sickness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-greenberg/the-creative-strength-is-good-enough-and-deep-enough-to-bring-itself/) [Joanne Greenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-greenberg/) > [Anytime I get the chance to sing or work with Michael John, it is such an incredibly fertile and incredibly creative and safe and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/audra-mcdonald/anytime-i-get-the-chance-to-sing-or-work-with-michael-john-it-is-such/) [Audra McDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/audra-mcdonald/) > [What Sri Chinmoy does is God-given! He has a tremendous, a fantastic creative urge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravi-shankar/what-sri-chinmoy-does-is-god-given-he-has-a-tremendous-a-fantastic/) [Ravi Shankar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravi-shankar/) > [Majority decisions tend to be made without engaging the systematic thought and critical thinking skills of the individuals in the group. Given the force…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/majority-decisions-tend-to-be-made-without-engaging-the-systematic/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [when times are tough, the weak bail and the tough get creative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelley-armstrong/when-times-are-tough-the-weak-bail-and-the-tough-get-creative/) [Kelley Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelley-armstrong/) > [Teasing out the way the world might look through another's eyes is what makes the creative process so fascinating and enjoyable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-l-carter/teasing-out-the-way-the-world-might-look-through-another-s-eyes-is/) [Stephen L. Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-l-carter/) > [The creation lives as genesis beneath the visible surface of the work. All intelligent people see this after the fact, but only the creative…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-klee/the-creation-lives-as-genesis-beneath-the-visible-surface-of-the-work/) [Paul Klee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-klee/) [Browse all 7,284 Creative quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creative/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The creative person, the person who moves from an irrational source of power, has to face the fact that this power antagonizes. Under all the superficial praise of the creative is the desire to kill. 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