--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The thing that makes poetry different…" description: "\"“The thing that makes poetry different from all other arts [is that] you're using language, which is what you use for everything else--telling lies and..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d26/w-s-merwin-2-23725_art_the-thing-that-makes-poetry-different-fr_508289.jpg" --- # The thing that makes poetry different from all other arts… ![“The thing that makes poetry different from all other arts [is that] you're using language, which is what you use for everything else--telling lies and selling socks, advertising and conducting law. Whereas we don't write little concerti to each other, or paint pictures.” quote by W.S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d26/w-s-merwin-2-23725_art_the-thing-that-makes-poetry-different-fr_508289.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d26/w-s-merwin-2-23725_art_the-thing-that-makes-poetry-different-fr_508289.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d26/w-s-merwin-2-23725_art_the-thing-that-makes-poetry-different-fr_508289.jpg) > ““The thing that makes poetry different from all other arts \[is that\] you're using language, which is what you use for everything else--telling lies and selling socks, advertising and conducting law. Whereas we don't write little concerti to each other, or paint pictures.”” [W.S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin-2/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Poetry differs from other arts because it uses everyday language, which is also used for deception, commerce, and law, unlike other artistic forms. **In simple terms:** Poetry uses ordinary language, unlike other arts. Key Takeaway Recognize poetry’s unique use of language. Themes art language poetry Mood thoughtful introspective Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - writing workshops - literary criticism - educational curricula Key Concepts literary theory communication Questions to Reflect On - How does everyday language affect poetic expression? - Can poetry transcend its ordinary language roots? A Different Perspective Poetry’s reliance on common language may limit its distinctiveness. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) ## Related quotes > [An experienced reader uses the poem as an agent of inquiry. 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When Steve Jobs announced a new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kabir-sehgal/one-of-the-best-ways-to-convince-someone-is-to-use-a-telling-example/) [Kabir Sehgal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kabir-sehgal/) > [“Love doesn’t make you a poet; it makes you poetry.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yarro-rai/love-doesn-t-make-you-a-poet-it-makes-you-poetry/) [Yarro Rai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yarro-rai/) > [What makes poetry? A full heart, brimful of one noble passion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/what-makes-poetry-a-full-heart-brimful-of-one-noble-passion/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [I am learning to see. 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These object or random…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-prolific-penman/the-things-that-will-be-spoken-here-come-from-the-images-and-things/) The Prolific Penman ## More by W.S. Merwin > [“…Preserve my eyes, which are irreplaceable. Preserve my heart, veins, bones, Against the slow death building in them like hornets until the place is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin-2/preserve-my-eyes-which-are-irreplaceable-preserve-my-heart-veins/) [W.S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin-2/) > [“all these years I have looked through your limbs to the river below and the roofs and the night and you were the way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin-2/all-these-years-i-have-looked-through-your-limbs-to-the-river-below/) [W.S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin-2/) > [“I have no way of telling what I miss I am the only one who misses it”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin-2/i-have-no-way-of-telling-what-i-miss-i-am-the-only-one-who-misses-it/) [W.S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin-2/) > [“A BIRTHDAY Something continues and I don't know what to call it though the language is full of suggestions in the way of language…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin-2/a-birthday-something-continues-and-i-don-t-know-what-to-call-it/) [W.S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin-2/) > [“October" I remember how I would say, “I will gather These pieces together, Any minute now I will make A knife out of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin-2/october-i-remember-how-i-would-say-i-will-gather-these-pieces/) [W.S. 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Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin-2/) > [“where will the meanings be when the words are forgotten will I see again where you are”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin-2/where-will-the-meanings-be-when-the-words-are-forgotten-will-i-see/) [W.S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin-2/) > [“...Yes, now the roads themselves are shattered As though they had fallen from a height, and the sky Is cracked like varnish. Hard to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin-2/yes-now-the-roads-themselves-are-shattered-as-though-they-had-fallen/) [W.S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin-2/) > [“Place" On the last day of the world I would want to plant a tree what for not the fruit the tree that bears…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin-2/place-on-the-last-day-of-the-world-i-would-want-to-plant-a-tree-what/) [W.S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin-2/) > [“...The old bottles lay dreaming of new wine. 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