---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Poetry is emotion put into measure. The…"
description: "\"Poetry is emotion put into measure. The emotion must come by nature, but the measure can be acquired by art.\" — Thomas Hardy"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0cf/thomas-hardy-410_art_poetry-is-emotion-put-into-measure-the-e_393376.jpg"
---

#  Poetry is emotion put into measure. The emotion must come…

![“Poetry is emotion put into measure. The emotion must come by nature, but the measure can be acquired by art.” quote by Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0cf/thomas-hardy-410_art_poetry-is-emotion-put-into-measure-the-e_393376.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0cf/thomas-hardy-410_art_poetry-is-emotion-put-into-measure-the-e_393376.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0cf/thomas-hardy-410_art_poetry-is-emotion-put-into-measure-the-e_393376.jpg)

> “Poetry is emotion put into measure. The emotion must come by nature, but the measure can be acquired by art.”

[Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Art transforms raw feeling into structured expression, balancing natural emotion with crafted form.

**In simple terms:** Art shapes feeling into form.

Key Takeaway

Learn to balance emotion and technique.

Themes

creativity emotion craft balance

Mood

reflective inspired

Type

literary philosophical

When to use this quote

- writing poetry
- music composition
- visual arts
- teaching creative writing

Key Concepts

Aesthetics expressivity structure

Questions to Reflect On

- How does structure enhance or limit emotional honesty?
- Can technique ever fully capture raw feeling?

A Different Perspective

Art may constrain spontaneity if over‑structured.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Come](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/come/) [Emotion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/emotion/) [Emotion Come](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/emotion-come-374902/) [Emotion Measure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/emotion-measure-3543621/) [Measure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/measure/) [Measure Emotion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/measure-emotion-3543620/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Poetry Emotion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry-emotion-1572444/)

## Related quotes

> [“Because it's an emotion, they come and go.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-rivero/because-it-s-an-emotion-they-come-and-go/)

[Michael Rivero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-rivero/)

> [don't just describe an emotion, arouse it, make them experience it, by manipulating the symbol of the emotion, and sometimes we have to come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-wolfe/don-t-just-describe-an-emotion-arouse-it-make-them-experience-it-by/)

[Tom Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-wolfe/)

> [You have to listen to the anthems, allow the emotion to come, but then need to snap back into the match and your specific…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-scott/you-have-to-listen-to-the-anthems-allow-the-emotion-to-come-but-then/)

[Alex Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-scott/)

> [If I let a little of the emotion out, all of it will come out, and it will never end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/if-i-let-a-little-of-the-emotion-out-all-of-it-will-come-out-and-it/)

[Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/)

> [With mindfulness, we can be with the experience in more immediate way. When we find ourselves flooded with an emotion that's come after the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-coleman/with-mindfulness-we-can-be-with-the-experience-in-more-immediate-way/)

[Mark Coleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-coleman/)

> [It is impossible for emotion not to come on us in thinking of that time now flowed away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-cezanne/it-is-impossible-for-emotion-not-to-come-on-us-in-thinking-of-that/)

[Paul Cezanne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-cezanne/)

> [Poetry is when an emotion has found its thought and the thought has found words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-frost/poetry-is-when-an-emotion-has-found-its-thought-and-the-thought-has/)

[Robert Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-frost/)

> [If we can discover the meaning in the trilling of a frog, perhaps we may understand why it is for us not merely noise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrian-forsyth/if-we-can-discover-the-meaning-in-the-trilling-of-a-frog-perhaps-we/)

[Adrian Forsyth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrian-forsyth/)

> [In poetry, only emotion endures.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/x-j-kennedy/in-poetry-only-emotion-endures/)

[X. J. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/x-j-kennedy/)

> [“Poetry is when emotion blooms like flowers with the petals of words and spreads the fragrance of perception.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debasish-mridha/poetry-is-when-emotion-blooms-like-flowers-with-the-petals-of-words/)

[Debasish Mridha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debasish-mridha/)

> [Poetry is emotion, passion, love, grief - everything that is human. It is not for zombies by zombies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-sionil-jos/poetry-is-emotion-passion-love-grief-everything-that-is-human-it-is/)

[F. Sionil Jose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-sionil-jos/)

> [“To the Greeks this problem of the conditions of poetic production, and the places occupied by either spontaneity or self-consciousness in any artistic work,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/to-the-greeks-this-problem-of-the-conditions-of-poetic-production-and/)

[Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/)

> [I don't see poetry as something that has to do with too much emotion anyway. It has to do with language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-herzog/i-don-t-see-poetry-as-something-that-has-to-do-with-too-much-emotion/)

[Werner Herzog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-herzog/)

> [Poetry is emotion recollected in tranquillity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/poetry-is-emotion-recollected-in-tranquillity/)

[William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/)

> [Unmarried couples should get married - that's an excellent tax avoidance measure, if a bit drastic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-whiting/unmarried-couples-should-get-married-that-s-an-excellent-tax/)

[John Whiting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-whiting/)

## More by Thomas Hardy

> [“He grew away from old associations, and saw something new in life and humanity. Secondarily, he made close acquaintance with phenomena which he had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/he-grew-away-from-old-associations-and-saw-something-new-in-life-and/)

[Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/)

> [“She was in a sound sleep, Jude, dying of anxiety lest she should have caught a chill which might permanently injure her, was glad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/she-was-in-a-sound-sleep-jude-dying-of-anxiety-lest-she-should-have/)

[Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/)

> [Meanwhile, the trees were just as green as before; the birds sang and the sun shone as clearly now as ever. The familiar surroundings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/meanwhile-the-trees-were-just-as-green-as-before-the-birds-sang-and/)

[Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/)

> [You ride well, but you don't kiss nicely at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/you-ride-well-but-you-don-t-kiss-nicely-at-all/)

[Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/)

> [You could sometimes see her twelfth year in her cheeks, or her ninth sparkling from her eyes; and even her fifth would flit over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/you-could-sometimes-see-her-twelfth-year-in-her-cheeks-or-her-ninth/)

[Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/)

> [“It was mid-May time, bringing with it weather not, perhaps, quite so blooming as that assumed to be natural to the month by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/it-was-mid-may-time-bringing-with-it-weather-not-perhaps-quite-so/)

[Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/)

> [If Galileo had said in verse that the world moved, the inquisition might have let him alone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/if-galileo-had-said-in-verse-that-the-world-moved-the-inquisition/)

[Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/)

> [Some folk want their luck buttered.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/some-folk-want-their-luck-buttered/)

[Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/)

> [Measurement of life should be proportioned rather to the intensity of the experience than to its actual length.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/measurement-of-life-should-be-proportioned-rather-to-the-intensity-of/)

[Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/)

> [“I was court-martialed in my absence, and sentenced to death in my absence, so I said they could shoot me in my absence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/i-was-court-martialed-in-my-absence-and-sentenced-to-death-in-my/)

[Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/)

> [“It being the first time in his life that he had touched female fingers under water, Dick duly registered the sensation as rather a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/it-being-the-first-time-in-his-life-that-he-had-touched-female/)

[Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/)

> [“As soon as she could discern the outline of the house, it had all its old effect upon Tess's imagination. Part of her body…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/as-soon-as-she-could-discern-the-outline-of-the-house-it-had-all-its/)

[Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/)

> [ The perfect woman, you see \[is\] a working-woman; not an idler; not a fine lady; but one who \[uses\] her hands and her head… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/the-perfect-woman-you-see-is-a-working-woman-not-an-idler-not-a-fine/)

[Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/)

> [“The Sinister Spirit sneered: 'It had to be!' And again the Spirit of Pity whispered, 'Why?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/the-sinister-spirit-sneered-it-had-to-be-and-again-the-spirit-of-pity/)

[Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/)

> [“Justice” was done, and the President of the Immortals (in Aeschylean phrase) had ended his sport with Tess.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/justice-was-done-and-the-president-of-the-immortals-in-aeschylean/)

[Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/)

[Explore all 561 Thomas Hardy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/)

## More Art quotes

> [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/)

[Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/)

> [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/)

[Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/)

> [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/)

[Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/)

> [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/)

[Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/)

> [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/)

[Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/)

> [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/)

[Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/)

> [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/)

[Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/)

> [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/)

[Taf Teh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taf-teh/)

> [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/)

[Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/)

> [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/)

[Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/)

> [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/)

[Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/)

> [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/)

[G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/)

> [“The only thing--I tell you this straight from the heart--that disgusts me in Salzburg is that one can't have any proper social intercourse with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/the-only-thing-i-tell-you-this-straight-from-the-heart-that-disgusts/)

[Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/)

> [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/)

[Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/)

> [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/)

[Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/)

[Browse all 48,643 Art quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Poetry is emotion put into measure. The emotion must come by nature, but the measure can be acquired by art.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Thomas Hardy"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/poetry-is-emotion-put-into-measure-the-emotion-must-come-by-nature/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Art"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/poetry-is-emotion-put-into-measure-the-emotion-must-come-by-nature/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0cf/thomas-hardy-410_art_poetry-is-emotion-put-into-measure-the-e_393376.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0cf/thomas-hardy-410_art_poetry-is-emotion-put-into-measure-the-e_393376.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0cf/thomas-hardy-410_art_poetry-is-emotion-put-into-measure-the-e_393376.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Poetry is emotion put into measure. The emotion must come by nature, but the measure can be acquired by art.” — Thomas Hardy",
                "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": "Thomas Hardy",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Poetry is emotion put into measure....",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/poetry-is-emotion-put-into-measure-the-emotion-must-come-by-nature/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/poetry-is-emotion-put-into-measure-the-emotion-must-come-by-nature/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
