Composing Quote by T. S. Eliot
“Composing on the typewriter, I find that I am sloughing off all my long sentences which I used to dote upon. Short, staccato, like modern French prose. The typewriter makes for lucidity, but I am not sure that it encourages subtlety.”
About This Quote
Source Essay: "On the Typewriter", 1922
Describes how typing forces concise, clear prose, potentially at the cost of subtlety.
In simple terms: Typing encourages brevity and clarity.
Key Takeaway
Balance clarity with depth in writing.
Themes
writing
clarity
style
technology
creativity
Mood
reflective
analytical
Type
literary
creative
When to use this quote
- creative writing
- editing
- academic publishing
Key Concepts
literary theory
communication studies
Questions to Reflect On
- How does tool choice shape expression?
- Can clarity coexist with subtlety?
A Different Perspective
Over‑conciseness may oversimplify complex ideas.
![“the ordinary man's experience is chaotic, irregular, fragmentary. [He] falls in love or reads Spinoza, and these two experiences have nothing to do with each other, or with the noise of the typewriter, or the smell of cooking; in the mind of the poet these experiences are always forming new wholes” quote by T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/18e/t-s-eliot-633_art_the-ordinary-man-s-experience-is-chaotic_93688.jpg)
