---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It has been said that a poem should not…"
description: "\"It has been said that a poem should not mean but be. This is not quite accurate. In a poem, as distinct from many other kinds of verbal societies, mean..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/94f/w-h-auden-856_books_it-has-been-said-that-a-poem-should-not_1904977.jpg"
---

#  It has been said that a poem should not mean but be. This…

![“It has been said that a poem should not mean but be. This is not quite accurate. In a poem, as distinct from many other kinds of verbal societies, meaning and being are identical. A poem might be called a pseudo-person. Like a person, it is unique and addresses the reader personally. On the other…” quote by W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/94f/w-h-auden-856_books_it-has-been-said-that-a-poem-should-not_1904977.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/94f/w-h-auden-856_books_it-has-been-said-that-a-poem-should-not_1904977.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/94f/w-h-auden-856_books_it-has-been-said-that-a-poem-should-not_1904977.jpg)

> “It has been said that a poem should not mean but be. This is not quite accurate. In a poem, as distinct from many other kinds of verbal societies, meaning and being are identical. A poem might be called a pseudo-person. Like a person, it is unique and addresses the reader personally. On the other hand, like a natural being and unlike a historical person, it cannot lie.”

[W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/)

## About This Quote

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

A poem’s essence is its existence; its meaning and being are one, making it a unique, honest voice.

**In simple terms:** Poems are being and meaning combined.

Key Takeaway

Recognize poetry as an authentic presence.

Themes

creativity authenticity language

Mood

reflective introspective

Type

literary philosophical

When to use this quote

- reading poetry
- creative writing
- literary analysis

Key Concepts

existentialism literary theory

Questions to Reflect On

- How does a poem’s “being” affect your interpretation?
- Can a poem be both honest and deceptive?

A Different Perspective

Poems can still be interpreted subjectively, limiting universal truth.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Historical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/historical/) [Lying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lying/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/)

## Related quotes

> [The animal encounter poem is now so distinct a genre that it would be possible to create a full-length anthology from deer encounter poems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burnside/the-animal-encounter-poem-is-now-so-distinct-a-genre-that-it-would-be/)

[John Burnside](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burnside/)

> [A poem should not mean but be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/archibald-macleish/a-poem-should-not-mean-but-be/)

[Archibald MacLeish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/archibald-macleish/)

> [“ Ars Poetica A poem should be palpable and mute As a globed fruit, Dumb As old medallions to the thumb, Silent as the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/archibald-macleish/ars-poetica-a-poem-should-be-palpable-and-mute-as-a-globed-fruit-dumb/)

[Archibald MacLeish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/archibald-macleish/)

> [“Enséñame a volar, mi mariposa hermosa,’ Tim said suddenly. ‘It’s from a poem I— Well, it’s from a poem.’ ‘What’s it mean?’ ”Teach me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-bell/ens-ame-a-volar-mi-mariposa-hermosa-tim-said-suddenly-it-s-from-a/)

[Jay Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-bell/)

> [“Heart; I named my lass sweetly; She danced to the mundane tunes of daftness; By nature she was midsummer madness; Or rather a reckless,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ranjani-ramachandran/heart-i-named-my-lass-sweetly-she-danced-to-the-mundane-tunes-of/)

[Ranjani Ramachandran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ranjani-ramachandran/)

> [“As Auden is believed to have said, no poem saved a single Jew from the gas chambers. Never mind. Write the poems anyway. Play…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/as-auden-is-believed-to-have-said-no-poem-saved-a-single-jew-from-the/)

[Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/)

> [“I am a forward-looking girl and don't stay where I am. "Left right, Be bright," as I said in my poem. That's on days…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stevie-smith/i-am-a-forward-looking-girl-and-don-t-stay-where-i-am-left-right-be/)

[Stevie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stevie-smith/)

> [“Tanto gentile e tanto onesta pare la donna mia,” he whispered, the words from Dante’s La Vita Nuova flooding from his lips. “Quand’ella altrui…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-darhower/tanto-gentile-e-tanto-onesta-pare-la-donna-mia-he-whispered-the-words/)

[J.M. Darhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-darhower/)

> [The great post-Holocaust poet, Paul Celan, said that a poem is a message in a bottle sent out in the not always greatly hopeful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/the-great-post-holocaust-poet-paul-celan-said-that-a-poem-is-a/)

[Edward Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/)

> [At the temple there is a poem called "Loss" carved into the stone. It has three words, but the poet has scratched them out.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/at-the-temple-there-is-a-poem-called-loss-carved-into-the-stone-it/)

[Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/)

> [“In Ms Yuka's class he once wrote a poem about it called: 'Listen' The last lines were - I know you know you do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-wright/in-ms-yuka-s-class-he-once-wrote-a-poem-about-it-called-listen-the/)

[Steven Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-wright/)

> [“….unable to find a title for her last published novel, she wrote six lines which included her eventual title The Birds Fall Down. These…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-glendinning/unable-to-find-a-title-for-her-last-published-novel-she-wrote-six/)

[Victoria Glendinning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-glendinning/)

> [“Once on yellow sheet of paper with green lines, he wrote a poem and he called it “Spot” because that was the name of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/earl-reum/once-on-yellow-sheet-of-paper-with-green-lines-he-wrote-a-poem-and-he/)

Earl Reum

> [After my grandfather died I went down to the basement of my family house where my family kept books, anthologies and things and there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/after-my-grandfather-died-i-went-down-to-the-basement-of-my-family/)

[Edward Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/)

> [My favourite poem is called 'Roots and Wings' - it's a very moving poem about how if you've got real roots you can fly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-miliband/my-favourite-poem-is-called-roots-and-wings-it-s-a-very-moving-poem/)

[David Miliband](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-miliband/)

## More by W. H. Auden

> [Pleasure is by no means an infallible critical guide, but it is the least fallible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/pleasure-is-by-no-means-an-infallible-critical-guide-but-it-is-the/)

[W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/)

> [Why doesn't the United States take over the monarchy and unite with England? England does have important assets. Naturally the longer you wait, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/why-doesn-t-the-united-states-take-over-the-monarchy-and-unite-with/)

[W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/)

> [The commonest ivory tower is that of the average man, the state of passivity towards experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/the-commonest-ivory-tower-is-that-of-the-average-man-the-state-of/)

[W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/)

> [Harrow the house of the dead; look shining at New styles of architecture, a change of heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/harrow-the-house-of-the-dead-look-shining-at-new-styles-of/)

[W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/)

> [Most poetry is the utterance of a man in some state of passion, love, joy, grief, rage, etc., and no doubt this is as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/most-poetry-is-the-utterance-of-a-man-in-some-state-of-passion-love/)

[W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/)

> [Men will pay large sums to whores for telling them they are not bores.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/men-will-pay-large-sums-to-whores-for-telling-them-they-are-not-bores/)

[W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/)

> [If age, which is certainly Just as wicked as youth, look any wiser, It is only that youth is still able to believe It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/if-age-which-is-certainly-just-as-wicked-as-youth-look-any-wiser-it/)

[W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/)

> [“Those to whom evil is done, do evil in return”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/those-to-whom-evil-is-done-do-evil-in-return/)

[W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/)

> [I and the public know What all schoolchildren learn, Those to whom evil is done Do evil in return.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/i-and-the-public-know-what-all-schoolchildren-learn-those-to-whom/)

[W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/)

> [One cannot walk through an assembly factory and not feel that one is in Hell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/one-cannot-walk-through-an-assembly-factory-and-not-feel-that-one-is/)

[W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/)

> [How happy the lot of the mathematician. He is judged solely by his peers, and the standard is so high that no colleague or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/how-happy-the-lot-of-the-mathematician-he-is-judged-solely-by-his/)

[W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/)

> [Perhaps there is only one cardinal sin: impatience. Because of impatience we were driven out of Paradise, because of impatience we cannot return.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/perhaps-there-is-only-one-cardinal-sin-impatience-because-of/)

[W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/)

> [The windiest militant trash Important Persons shout Is not so crude as our wish: What mad Nijinsky wrote About Diaghilev Is true of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/the-windiest-militant-trash-important-persons-shout-is-not-so-crude/)

[W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/)

> [Time and fevers burn away Individual beauty from Thoughtful children, and the grave Proves the child ephemeral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/time-and-fevers-burn-away-individual-beauty-from-thoughtful-children/)

[W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/)

> [To hunt for symbols in a fairy tale is absolutely fatal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/to-hunt-for-symbols-in-a-fairy-tale-is-absolutely-fatal/)

[W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/)

[Explore all 344 W. H. Auden quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/)

## More Books quotes

> [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/)

[Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/)

> [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/)

[Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/)

> [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/)

[Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/)

> [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/)

[Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/)

> [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/)

[Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/)

> [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/)

[Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/)

> [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/)

[Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/)

> [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/)

Christopher K. Krebs

> [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/)

[Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/)

> [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/)

[Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/)

> [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/)

[Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/)

> [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/)

[Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/)

> [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/)

[Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/)

> [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/)

Markus Herz

> [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/)

[Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/)

[Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "It has been said that a poem should not mean but be. This is not quite accurate. In a poem, as distinct from many other kinds of verbal societies, meaning and being are identical. A poem might be called a pseudo-person. Like a person, it is unique and addresses the reader personally. On the other hand, like a natural being and unlike a historical person, it cannot lie.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "W. H. Auden"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/it-has-been-said-that-a-poem-should-not-mean-but-be-this-is-not-quite/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Books"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/it-has-been-said-that-a-poem-should-not-mean-but-be-this-is-not-quite/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/94f/w-h-auden-856_books_it-has-been-said-that-a-poem-should-not_1904977.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/94f/w-h-auden-856_books_it-has-been-said-that-a-poem-should-not_1904977.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/94f/w-h-auden-856_books_it-has-been-said-that-a-poem-should-not_1904977.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“It has been said that a poem should not mean but be. This is not quite accurate. In a poem, as distinct from…” — W. H. Auden",
                "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": "W. H. Auden",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "It has been said that a...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/it-has-been-said-that-a-poem-should-not-mean-but-be-this-is-not-quite/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/it-has-been-said-that-a-poem-should-not-mean-but-be-this-is-not-quite/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```