--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Even though Helen Vendler wasn't on the…" description: "\"Even though Helen Vendler wasn't on the Harvard faculty when I came first in 1979, she was a guardian spirit; Robert Fitzgerald gave me the use of his ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e77/seamus-heaney-1711_bob_even-though-helen-vendler-wasn-t-on-the_1741342.png" --- # Even though Helen Vendler wasn't on the Harvard faculty… ![“Even though Helen Vendler wasn't on the Harvard faculty when I came first in 1979, she was a guardian spirit; Robert Fitzgerald gave me the use of his study in Pusey Library. Monroe and Brenda Engel kept open house, Bob and Jana Kiely made me at home in Adams House. Then, too, in 1979, Frank…” quote by Seamus Heaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e77/seamus-heaney-1711_bob_even-though-helen-vendler-wasn-t-on-the_1741342.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e77/seamus-heaney-1711_bob_even-though-helen-vendler-wasn-t-on-the_1741342.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e77/seamus-heaney-1711_bob_even-though-helen-vendler-wasn-t-on-the_1741342.png) > “Even though Helen Vendler wasn't on the Harvard faculty when I came first in 1979, she was a guardian spirit; Robert Fitzgerald gave me the use of his study in Pusey Library. Monroe and Brenda Engel kept open house, Bob and Jana Kiely made me at home in Adams House. Then, too, in 1979, Frank Bidart, whom Id met in Dublin after the death of Robert Lowell he was over seeing Caroline Blackwood Frank brought me into his circle of friends, including Robert Pinsky and Alan Williamson.” [Seamus Heaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seamus-heaney/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Heaney credits mentors, peers, and supportive community for shaping his poetic journey. **In simple terms:** Support networks nurture creative growth. Key Takeaway Cultivate supportive relationships. Themes literature community mentorship Mood grateful inspired Type reflective historical When to use this quote - writing workshops - university life - literary circles - collaborations - archival research Key Concepts Creative influence academic support Questions to Reflect On - Who has most influenced your work? - How do you give back to your community? A Different Perspective Reliance on others may limit independent voice. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Circle of friends](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/circle-of-friends/) [Circles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/circles/) [Dublin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dublin/) [Engels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/engels/) [Guardian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guardian/) [Home](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/home/) [Library](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/library/) [Spirit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirit/) ## Related quotes > [“I had no roof I made       Audacity my roof. ROBERT PINSKY, “Samurai Song”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/i-had-no-roof-i-made-audacity-my-roof-robert-pinsky-samurai-song/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [“The top eleven are, in order, T. S. Eliot’s “Prufrock,” Robert Lowell’s “Skunk Hour,” Robert Frost’s “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening,” William…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-gladwell/the-top-eleven-are-in-order-t-s-eliot-s-prufrock-robert-lowell-s/) [Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) > [One of my very favourite poets was a Massachusetts poet named Robert Lowell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-lanegan/one-of-my-very-favourite-poets-was-a-massachusetts-poet-named-robert/) [Mark Lanegan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-lanegan/) > [In a sense, I never got over Robert Lowell's History. A flawed, infinitely brilliant project I never tire of going back to. It's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-naffis-sahely/in-a-sense-i-never-got-over-robert-lowell-s-history-a-flawed/) [Andre Naffis-Sahely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-naffis-sahely/) > [And Robert Lowell, of course - in his poems, we're not located in his actual life. We're located more in the externals, in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-strand/and-robert-lowell-of-course-in-his-poems-we-re-not-located-in-his/) [Mark Strand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-strand/) > [“On The Death of Robert Lowell by Eileen Myles O, I don’t give a shit. He was an old white haired man Insensate beyond…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eileen-myles/on-the-death-of-robert-lowell-by-eileen-myles-o-i-don-t-give-a-shit/) [Eileen Myles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eileen-myles/) > [“You never know that. I don't know it; Robert Lowell doesn't know it; John Berryman didn't know it; and Shakespeare probably didn't know it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-dickey/you-never-know-that-i-don-t-know-it-robert-lowell-doesn-t-know-it/) [James Dickey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-dickey/) > [“A reflection on Robert Lowell Robert Lowell knew I was not one of his devotees. I attended his famous “office hours” salon only a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-pinsky/a-reflection-on-robert-lowell-robert-lowell-knew-i-was-not-one-of-his/) [Robert Pinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-pinsky/) > [I met Marx, Lenin, Trotsky, Engels and Mao when I entered prison and they redeemed me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-jackson/i-met-marx-lenin-trotsky-engels-and-mao-when-i-entered-prison-and/) [George Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-jackson/) > [“Lenin clearly and unambiguously poses the question of the relationship between the ‘form’ of materialism and its ‘essence’, of the impermissibility of identification of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evald-ilyenkov/lenin-clearly-and-unambiguously-poses-the-question-of-the/) Evald Ilyenkov > [“After attempting to outline Engels' thesis on the development of the family the following is said: "we are possessed of the myth of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catalina-adrianzen/after-attempting-to-outline-engels-thesis-on-the-development-of-the/) Catalina Adrianzen > [They say that the Soviet delegates smile. That smile is genuine. It is not artificial. We wish to live in peace, tranquility. But if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikita-khrushchev/they-say-that-the-soviet-delegates-smile-that-smile-is-genuine-it-is/) [Nikita Khrushchev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikita-khrushchev/) > [“As Engels memorably put it: “The overthrow of mother-right was the world historical defeat of the female sex. The man took command in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/as-engels-memorably-put-it-the-overthrow-of-mother-right-was-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [In all spheres of modern life the influence of Stalin reaches wide and deep. From his last simply written but vastly discerning and comprehensive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-robeson/in-all-spheres-of-modern-life-the-influence-of-stalin-reaches-wide/) [Paul Robeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-robeson/) > [The enormous dynamic and creative, as well as destructive energy of capitalism... is written up with more praise and more respect by Marx and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/the-enormous-dynamic-and-creative-as-well-as-destructive-energy-of/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) ## More by Seamus Heaney > [You had to come back to learn how to lose yourself, to be pilot and stray-witch, Hansel and Gretel in one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seamus-heaney/you-had-to-come-back-to-learn-how-to-lose-yourself-to-be-pilot-and/) [Seamus Heaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seamus-heaney/) > [If self is a location, so is love: Bearings taken, markings, cardinal points, Options, obstinacies, dug heels, and distance, Here and there and now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seamus-heaney/if-self-is-a-location-so-is-love-bearings-taken-markings-cardinal/) [Seamus Heaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seamus-heaney/) > [I'm very conscious that people dear to me are alive in my imagination - poets in particular.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seamus-heaney/i-m-very-conscious-that-people-dear-to-me-are-alive-in-my-imagination/) [Seamus Heaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seamus-heaney/) > [Once I was on the job, once I had got started, I felt safe enough, but the anticipation made me tense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seamus-heaney/once-i-was-on-the-job-once-i-had-got-started-i-felt-safe-enough-but/) [Seamus Heaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seamus-heaney/) > [You can have Irish identity in the north and also have your Irish passport.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seamus-heaney/you-can-have-irish-identity-in-the-north-and-also-have-your-irish/) [Seamus Heaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seamus-heaney/) > [The external reality and inner dynamic of happenings in Northern Ireland between 1968 and 1974 were symptomatic of change, violent change admittedly, but change…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seamus-heaney/the-external-reality-and-inner-dynamic-of-happenings-in-northern/) [Seamus Heaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seamus-heaney/) > [Hope for a great sea-change timid to rebuke and too petty to forgive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seamus-heaney/hope-for-a-great-sea-change-timid-to-rebuke-and-too-petty-to-forgive/) [Seamus Heaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seamus-heaney/) > [One of the very first poems I wrote was Docker That fist would drop a hammer on a Catholic and one of the sturdiest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seamus-heaney/one-of-the-very-first-poems-i-wrote-was-docker-that-fist-would-drop-a/) [Seamus Heaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seamus-heaney/) > [Anything Can Happen is also, incidentally, a poem that arose from teaching. I'd talked about the Horace Ode (I, 34) \[on which the poem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seamus-heaney/anything-can-happen-is-also-incidentally-a-poem-that-arose-from/) [Seamus Heaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seamus-heaney/) > [Poetry is always slightly mysterious, and you wonder what is your relationship to it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seamus-heaney/poetry-is-always-slightly-mysterious-and-you-wonder-what-is-your/) [Seamus Heaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seamus-heaney/) > [Sink every impulse like a bolt. Secure The bastion of sensation. Do not waver Into language. Do not waver in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seamus-heaney/sink-every-impulse-like-a-bolt-secure-the-bastion-of-sensation-do-not/) [Seamus Heaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seamus-heaney/) > [Two buckets were easier carried than one. / I grew up in between.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seamus-heaney/two-buckets-were-easier-carried-than-one-i-grew-up-in-between/) [Seamus Heaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seamus-heaney/) > [I suppose I'm saying that defiance is actually part of the lyric job](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seamus-heaney/i-suppose-i-m-saying-that-defiance-is-actually-part-of-the-lyric-job/) [Seamus Heaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seamus-heaney/) > [“It is said that once upon a time St. Kevin was kneeling with his arms stretched out in the form of a cross in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seamus-heaney/it-is-said-that-once-upon-a-time-st-kevin-was-kneeling-with-his-arms/) [Seamus Heaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seamus-heaney/) > [My father and mother had no sense of entitlement for their children.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seamus-heaney/my-father-and-mother-had-no-sense-of-entitlement-for-their-children/) [Seamus Heaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seamus-heaney/) [Explore all 214 Seamus Heaney quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seamus-heaney/) ## More Bob quotes > [In the movie, the stars above the ship bear no correspondence to any constellations in a real sky. Worse yet, while the heroine bobs...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/in-the-movie-the-stars-above-the-ship-bear-no-correspondence-to-any/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [I think anyone that grew up in the '70s and '80s grew up with Bob Barker and Wink Martindale and I think that was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-fieri/i-think-anyone-that-grew-up-in-the-70s-and-80s-grew-up-with-bob/) [Guy Fieri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-fieri/) > [ Except in these latter-day songs, \[Bob\] Dylan is a grizzled old prophet who's already been to hell and back. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-michaelson/except-in-these-latter-day-songs-bob-dylan-is-a-grizzled-old-prophet/) [Jay Michaelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-michaelson/) > [Over the past 50 years Bob Hope employed 88 joke writers who supplied him with more than one million gags, and he still couldn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-murphy/over-the-past-50-years-bob-hope-employed-88-joke-writers-who-supplied/) [Eddie Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-murphy/) > [I like men who are very cool but who are also so brilliant that they are almost insane. Sean Penn, Gary Oldman, Bob Dylan,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jolene-blalock/i-like-men-who-are-very-cool-but-who-are-also-so-brilliant-that-they/) [Jolene Blalock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jolene-blalock/) > [I was very engaged by the folk music movement.Bob Dylan; Joan Baez; Peter, Paul and Mary. And then I sort of discovered world music,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-stein/i-was-very-engaged-by-the-folk-music-movement-bob-dylan-joan-baez/) [Jill Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-stein/) > [ The most recent incarnation of \[Bob\] Dylan has been the traveling journeyman/ charlatan who sings roots music, snarls dark lyrics that make "All Along… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-michaelson/the-most-recent-incarnation-of-bob-dylan-has-been-the-traveling/) [Jay Michaelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-michaelson/) > [Well. We’ll just have to hope that this wasn’t a loup-garou, I guess.” “If it was a louper, you’d know,” Bob said wisely. “In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-butcher/well-we-ll-just-have-to-hope-that-this-wasn-t-a-loup-garou-i-guess-if/) [Jim Butcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-butcher/) > [Because of my tremendous respect for Bob Barker and for the show's high standards of professionalism I consider this a tremendous honor that few…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-west/because-of-my-tremendous-respect-for-bob-barker-and-for-the-show-s/) [Randy West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-west/) > [That's who I wanted to be like was Bob Dylan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kris-kristofferson/that-s-who-i-wanted-to-be-like-was-bob-dylan/) [Kris Kristofferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kris-kristofferson/) > [Everybody who I ever cared about has told me that they like my music: Bob Dylan, Paul McCartney, Al Green, The Spinners, Smokey Robinson.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daryl-hall/everybody-who-i-ever-cared-about-has-told-me-that-they-like-my-music/) [Daryl Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daryl-hall/) > [Bob's work gleaned from hoofing, from vaudeville, from ballet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-reinking/bob-s-work-gleaned-from-hoofing-from-vaudeville-from-ballet/) [Ann Reinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-reinking/) > [Producing Bob Dylan was pretty much a spectator sport.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-kooper/producing-bob-dylan-was-pretty-much-a-spectator-sport/) [Al Kooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-kooper/) > [Listen, the story of the United States is this: One kid, without anything, walks out of his house, down the road, with nothing but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-bone-burnett/listen-the-story-of-the-united-states-is-this-one-kid-without/) [T Bone Burnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-bone-burnett/) > [I figure if I keep my health, I have no intention of retiring. I love to work. I want to be like Bob Hope.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dolly-parton/i-figure-if-i-keep-my-health-i-have-no-intention-of-retiring-i-love/) [Dolly Parton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dolly-parton/) Browse all 886 Bob quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Even though Helen Vendler wasn't on the Harvard faculty when I came first in 1979, she was a guardian spirit; Robert Fitzgerald gave me the use of his study in Pusey Library. Monroe and Brenda Engel kept open house, Bob and Jana Kiely made me at home in Adams House. 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