--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I have made a similar suggestion for…" description: "\"“I have made a similar suggestion for poetry: that one should approach it as pure sonority, reading and rereading it as a sort of music, and should not..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b3/paul-valery-1464_music_i-have-made-a-similar-suggestion-for-poe_1248601.jpg" --- # I have made a similar suggestion for poetry: that one… ![“I have made a similar suggestion for poetry: that one should approach it as pure sonority, reading and rereading it as a sort of music, and should not introduce meanings or intentions into the diction before clearly grasping the system of sounds that every poem must offer on pain of nonexistence.” quote by Paul Valéry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b3/paul-valery-1464_music_i-have-made-a-similar-suggestion-for-poe_1248601.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b3/paul-valery-1464_music_i-have-made-a-similar-suggestion-for-poe_1248601.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b3/paul-valery-1464_music_i-have-made-a-similar-suggestion-for-poe_1248601.jpg) > ““I have made a similar suggestion for poetry: that one should approach it as pure sonority, reading and rereading it as a sort of music, and should not introduce meanings or intentions into the diction before clearly grasping the system of sounds that every poem must offer on pain of nonexistence.”” [Paul Valéry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-valery/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Poetry should be approached like music, focusing on sound and sonority before assigning meaning, ensuring the poem’s auditory integrity. **In simple terms:** Treat poetry as music, valuing sound before meaning. Key Takeaway Listen to a poem’s music first. Themes poetry music sonority Mood contemplative analytical Type critical philosophical When to use this quote - reading poetry - creative writing workshops - literary analysis Key Concepts aesthetic theory literary criticism Questions to Reflect On - How does sound influence meaning? - Can a poem exist without explicit meaning? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on sound may neglect thematic depth. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) ## Related quotes > [“Forgive the pessimism, if not the sonority. But I know how much you demand from a thing, you little bastard.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger/forgive-the-pessimism-if-not-the-sonority-but-i-know-how-much-you/) [J.D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger/) > [Poetry is, above all, an approach to the truth of feeling . . .. A fine poem will seize your imagination intellectually-that is, when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muriel-rukeyser/poetry-is-above-all-an-approach-to-the-truth-of-feeling-a-fine-poem/) [Muriel Rukeyser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muriel-rukeyser/) > [Poetry is, above all, an approach to the truth of feeling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muriel-rukeyser/poetry-is-above-all-an-approach-to-the-truth-of-feeling/) [Muriel Rukeyser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muriel-rukeyser/) > [Poetry is rather an approach to things, to life, than it is typographical production.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-brodsky/poetry-is-rather-an-approach-to-things-to-life-than-it-is/) [Joseph Brodsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-brodsky/) > [All lyrical work must, as a whole, be perfectly intelligible, but in some particulars a little unintelligible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/all-lyrical-work-must-as-a-whole-be-perfectly-intelligible-but-in/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [You don’t read or overhear the voice in the poem, you are the voice in the poem.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-vendler/you-don-t-read-or-overhear-the-voice-in-the-poem-you-are-the-voice-in/) [Helen Vendler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-vendler/) > [Some minds corrode and grow inactive under the loss of personal liberty; others grow morbid and irritable; but it is the nature of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/washington-irving/some-minds-corrode-and-grow-inactive-under-the-loss-of-personal/) [Washington Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/washington-irving/) > [“In the streets, the children scream, the lovers cried, and the poets dreamed,” he crooned, putting down the metal grill tongs to take my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandria-clarke/in-the-streets-the-children-scream-the-lovers-cried-and-the-poets/) [Alexandria Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandria-clarke/) > [The word 'mundane' has come to mean 'boring' and 'dull', and it really shouldn't - it should mean the opposite. Because it comes from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-word-mundane-has-come-to-mean-boring-and-dull-and-it-really/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“It took me years to learn to sit at my desk for more than two minutes at a time, to put up with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/it-took-me-years-to-learn-to-sit-at-my-desk-for-more-than-two-minutes/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [The poetry from the eighteenth century was prose; the prose from the seventeenth century was poetry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hare/the-poetry-from-the-eighteenth-century-was-prose-the-prose-from-the/) [David Hare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hare/) > [“Time gives poetry to a battlefield...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/time-gives-poetry-to-a-battlefield/) [Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/) > [A poet is wounded into speech, and he examines these wounds, meticulously, to discover how to heal them. The bad poet harangues at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/a-poet-is-wounded-into-speech-and-he-examines-these-wounds/) [Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/) > [The name Phenomenal Woman was inspired by Maya Angelo, who wrote 'Phenomenal Woman', a favorite poem of mine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meena-harris/the-name-phenomenal-woman-was-inspired-by-maya-angelo-who-wrote/) [Meena Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meena-harris/) > [I fell in love with social work, and that was my undoing as a poet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-rakosi/i-fell-in-love-with-social-work-and-that-was-my-undoing-as-a-poet/) [Carl Rakosi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-rakosi/) ## More by Paul Valéry > [In the eyes of those lovers of perfection, a work is never finished a word that for them has no sense but abandoned; and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-valery/in-the-eyes-of-those-lovers-of-perfection-a-work-is-never-finished-a/) [Paul Valery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-valery/) > [“O Socrates, the universe cannot for one instant endure to be only what it is. It is strange to think that that which is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-valery/o-socrates-the-universe-cannot-for-one-instant-endure-to-be-only-what/) [Paul Valéry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-valery/) > [We civilizations now know ourselves mortal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-valery/we-civilizations-now-know-ourselves-mortal/) [Paul Valery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-valery/) > [It seems to me that the soul, when alone with itself and speaking to itself, uses only a small number of words, none of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-valery/it-seems-to-me-that-the-soul-when-alone-with-itself-and-speaking-to/) [Paul Valery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-valery/) > [Serious people have few ideas. People with ideas are never serious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-valery/serious-people-have-few-ideas-people-with-ideas-are-never-serious/) [Paul Valery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-valery/) > [“I am now going to make an admission. I confess, I agree, that all these good people who protested, who laughed, who did not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-valery/i-am-now-going-to-make-an-admission-i-confess-i-agree-that-all-these/) [Paul Valery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-valery/) > [“Degas is one of the very few painters who have given the floor its true importance.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-valery/degas-is-one-of-the-very-few-painters-who-have-given-the-floor-its/) [Paul Valéry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-valery/) > [Politics is the art of preventing people from busying themselves with what is their own business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-valery/politics-is-the-art-of-preventing-people-from-busying-themselves-with/) [Paul Valery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-valery/) > [God created man and, finding him not sufficiently alone, gave him a companion to make him feel his solitude more keenly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-valery/god-created-man-and-finding-him-not-sufficiently-alone-gave-him-a/) [Paul Valery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-valery/) > [The most ridiculous were those who, on their own authority, made themselves the judges and justices of the tribe. They seemed never to suspect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-valery/the-most-ridiculous-were-those-who-on-their-own-authority-made/) [Paul Valery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-valery/) > [The folly of mistaking oneself for an oracle is built right into us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-valery/the-folly-of-mistaking-oneself-for-an-oracle-is-built-right-into-us/) [Paul Valery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-valery/) > [Thought must be hidden in the verse like nutritional virtue in a fruit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-valery/thought-must-be-hidden-in-the-verse-like-nutritional-virtue-in-a-fruit/) [Paul Valery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-valery/) > [To be sincere means to be the same person when one is with oneself; that is to say, alone - but that is all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-valery/to-be-sincere-means-to-be-the-same-person-when-one-is-with-oneself/) [Paul Valery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-valery/) > [No work of art is ever completed, it is only abandoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-valery/no-work-of-art-is-ever-completed-it-is-only-abandoned/) [Paul Valery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-valery/) > [Interruption, incoherence, surprise are the ordinary conditions of our life. They have even become real needs for many people, whose minds are no longer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-valery/interruption-incoherence-surprise-are-the-ordinary-conditions-of-our/) [Paul Valery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-valery/) [Explore all 215 Paul Valéry quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-valery/) ## More Music quotes > [I feel like I definitely have a real sporty style, more so than a lot of people in G.O.O.D. Music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/big-sean/i-feel-like-i-definitely-have-a-real-sporty-style-more-so-than-a-lot/) [Big Sean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/big-sean/) > [Before I debuted, it was my goal to make my debut, and afterwards, I aimed at winning champion titles on television music shows, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hyuna/before-i-debuted-it-was-my-goal-to-make-my-debut-and-afterwards-i/) [Hyuna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hyuna/) > [When you step out and do a song in a musical, the easier thing to do is make it funny. But when those transitions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelli-o-hara/when-you-step-out-and-do-a-song-in-a-musical-the-easier-thing-to-do/) [Kelli O'Hara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelli-o-hara/) > [I'm at the edge of the world, Where do I go from here? Do I disappear? Edge of the world, Should I sink or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bring-me-the-horizon/i-m-at-the-edge-of-the-world-where-do-i-go-from-here-do-i-disappear/) [Bring Me The Horizon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bring-me-the-horizon/) > [I've seen a lot of people come out of Carol City, but I had this distinct vision for Carol City, just me coming out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denzel-curry/i-ve-seen-a-lot-of-people-come-out-of-carol-city-but-i-had-this/) [Denzel Curry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denzel-curry/) > [When you listen to someone improvise, the notes that are played are only half the story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hubert-laws/when-you-listen-to-someone-improvise-the-notes-that-are-played-are/) Hubert Laws > [I understand that it's the music that keeps me alive... That's my lifeblood. And to give that up for, like, the TV, the cars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/i-understand-that-it-s-the-music-that-keeps-me-alive-that-s-my/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [ “Downloading's the same as what I used to do. I used to tape the charts of the songs I liked \[off the radio\]. I… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liam-gallagher/downloading-s-the-same-as-what-i-used-to-do-i-used-to-tape-the-charts/) [Liam Gallagher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liam-gallagher/) > [I've been writing songs since I was 10 years old and always had a penchant for rhyming. I started listening to hip hop through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hoodie-allen/i-ve-been-writing-songs-since-i-was-10-years-old-and-always-had-a/) [Hoodie Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hoodie-allen/) > [Each woman is like an instrument, waiting to be learned, loved, and finely played, to have at last her own true music made.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/each-woman-is-like-an-instrument-waiting-to-be-learned-loved-and/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [I want people to hear my lyrics and my melodies and say, 'That dude's in pain.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivan-moody/i-want-people-to-hear-my-lyrics-and-my-melodies-and-say-that-dude-s/) [Ivan Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivan-moody/) > [I make dance music because I love to dance. But I want to think at the same time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stromae/i-make-dance-music-because-i-love-to-dance-but-i-want-to-think-at-the/) [Stromae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stromae/) > [There is something magical about being able to feel somebody. And that is something that has always moved me with music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-brink/there-is-something-magical-about-being-able-to-feel-somebody-and-that/) [Maria Brink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-brink/) > [I feel very grateful to be alive and well enough to make music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-ant/i-feel-very-grateful-to-be-alive-and-well-enough-to-make-music/) Adam Ant > [I received a beautiful welcome to the world of music. I want to give something back to the younger generation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luciano-pavarotti/i-received-a-beautiful-welcome-to-the-world-of-music-i-want-to-give/) [Luciano Pavarotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luciano-pavarotti/) [Browse all 55,293 Music quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I have made a similar suggestion for poetry: that one should approach it as pure sonority, reading and rereading it as a sort of music, and should not introduce meanings or intentions into the diction before clearly grasping the system of sounds that every poem must offer on pain of nonexistence.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Paul Valéry" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-valery/i-have-made-a-similar-suggestion-for-poetry-that-one-should-approach/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Music" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-valery/i-have-made-a-similar-suggestion-for-poetry-that-one-should-approach/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b3/paul-valery-1464_music_i-have-made-a-similar-suggestion-for-poe_1248601.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b3/paul-valery-1464_music_i-have-made-a-similar-suggestion-for-poe_1248601.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b3/paul-valery-1464_music_i-have-made-a-similar-suggestion-for-poe_1248601.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I have made a similar suggestion for poetry: that one should approach it as pure sonority, reading and…” — Paul Valéry", "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": "Paul Valéry", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-valery/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“I have made a similar suggestion...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-valery/i-have-made-a-similar-suggestion-for-poetry-that-one-should-approach/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-valery/i-have-made-a-similar-suggestion-for-poetry-that-one-should-approach/#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 } } ] } ```