Money is the necessity that frees us from necessity. Of all novelists in any country, Trollope best understands the role of money. Compared with him even Balzac is a romantic.
W.H. Auden
Money, Freedom, Literature, Realism, Financial Insight
W.H. Auden’s Quotes On Topics
Age | Proverbs | Decline | Utility | Reviewing | Unconscious | Philosophical Thought | Universal Appeal | Civilization | Character | Names | Cultural Criticism | Parenting | Contrast | English Novels | Artistic Complexity | Inspiration | Repetition | Personal Bias | Self | More
More W.H. Auden Quotes
“All art is based on a certain degree of unnaturalness.” W.H. Auden
Art, Creativity, Perception, Authenticity, Commentary
W.H. Auden Art, Creativity, Perception, Authenticity, Commentary“May it not be that, just as we have to have faith in Him, God has to have faith in us and, considering the history of the human race so far, may it not be that 'faith' is even more difficult for Him than it is for us?” W.H. Auden
Faith, God, Humanity, Difficulty, Reciprocal Trust
W.H. Auden Faith, God, Humanity, Difficulty, Reciprocal Trust“Political history is far too criminal to be a fit subject of study for the young. Children should acquire their heroes and villians from fiction.” W.H. Auden
Education, History, Morality, Childhood, Fiction
W.H. Auden Education, History, Morality, Childhood, Fiction“Lost in a haunted wood, Children afraid of the night Who have never been happy or good.” W.H. Auden
Childhood, Fear, Innocence, Darkness, Moral Ambiguity
W.H. Auden Childhood, Fear, Innocence, Darkness, Moral Ambiguity“A tremendous number of people in America work very hard at something that bores them. Even a rich man thinks he has to go down to the office everyday. Not because he likes it but because he can't think of anything else to do.” W.H. Auden
Work, Boredom, Wealth, Purpose, American Culture
W.H. Auden Work, Boredom, Wealth, Purpose, American Culture“The definition of prayer is paying careful and concentrated attention to something other than your own constructions.” W.H. Auden
Prayer, Attention, Selflessness, Spirituality, Focus
W.H. Auden Prayer, Attention, Selflessness, Spirituality, Focus“Machines are beneficial to the degree that they eliminate the need for labor, harmful to the degree that they eliminate the need for skill.” W.H. Auden
Technology, Labor, Skill, Progress, Societal Impact
W.H. Auden Technology, Labor, Skill, Progress, Societal Impact“I just try to put the thing out and hope somebody will read it. Someone says: 'Whom do you write for?' I reply: 'Do you read me?' If they say 'Yes,' I say, 'Do you like it?' If they say 'No,' then I say, 'I don't write for you.'” W.H. Auden
Writing, Audience, Self-expression, Literary Purpose, Reader Interaction
W.H. Auden Writing, Audience, Self-expression, Literary Purpose, Reader Interaction“Blessed be all metrical rules that forbid automatic responses, force us to have second thoughts, free us from the fetters of Self.” W.H. Auden
Poetry, Rules, Creativity, Self-reflection, Artistic Constraints
W.H. Auden Poetry, Rules, Creativity, Self-reflection, Artistic Constraints“I am not in favor of Facebook friends who make Facebook enemies for me.” W.H. Auden
Social Media, Friendship, Conflict, Boundaries, Modern Relationships
W.H. Auden Social Media, Friendship, Conflict, Boundaries, Modern Relationships“Healing is not a science, but the intuitive art of wooing nature.” W.H. Auden
Healing, Intuition, Nature, Art, Science
W.H. Auden Healing, Intuition, Nature, Art, Science“Words have no word for words that are not true.” W.H. Auden
Truth, Language, Honesty, Expression, Communication
W.H. Auden Truth, Language, Honesty, Expression, Communication“Out on the lawn I lie in bed, Vega conspicuous overhead.” W.H. Auden
Stargazing, Perspective, Nature, Human Smallness, Poetic Imagery
W.H. Auden Stargazing, Perspective, Nature, Human Smallness, Poetic Imagery“Genealogies are admirable things, provided they do not encourage the curious delusion that some families are older than others.” W.H. Auden
Genealogy, Family, History, Delusion, Social Status
W.H. Auden Genealogy, Family, History, Delusion, Social Status“Before people complain of the obscurity of modern poetry, they should first examine their consciences and ask themselves with how many people and on how many occasions they have genuinely and profoundly shared some experience with another.” W.H. Auden
Obscurity, Poetry, Human Connection, Self-reflection, Depth
W.H. Auden Obscurity, Poetry, Human Connection, Self-reflection, Depth“A small grove massacred to the last ash, An oak with heart-rot, give away the show: This great society is going to smash; They cannot fool us with how fast they go, How much they cost each other and the gods. A culture is no better than its woods.” W.H. Auden
Nature, Society, Decline, Environmental Destruction, Cultural Criticism
W.H. Auden Nature, Society, Decline, Environmental Destruction, Cultural Criticism“Murder is unique in that it abolishes the party it injures, so that society has to take the place of the victim and on his behalf demand atonement or grant forgiveness; it is the one crime in which society has a direct interest.” W.H. Auden
Murder, Society, Justice, Forgiveness, Social Responsibility
W.H. Auden Murder, Society, Justice, Forgiveness, Social Responsibility“An unmanly sort of man whose love life seems to have been largely confined to crying in laps and playing mouse.” W.H. Auden
Masculinity, Love, Criticism, Weakness, Character Assessment
W.H. Auden Masculinity, Love, Criticism, Weakness, Character Assessment