Those who will not reason, perish in the act. Those who will not act, perish for that reason.
W.H. Auden
Reason, Action, Consequences, Decision-making, Philosophy
W.H. Auden’s Quotes On Topics
Unpopularity | Medicine | Novel Writing | Identity | Public Knowledge | Ambition | Sin | Empathy | Mythology | Life Choices | Specificity | Photography | Spiritual Experience | Finance | Empowerment | Youth | Renewal | Subjectivity | Self-control | Moral Complexity | More
More W.H. Auden Quotes
“A craftsman knows in advance what the finished result will be, while the artist knows only what it will be when he has finished it.” W.H. Auden
Craftsmanship, Art, Process, Creativity, Expectation
W.H. Auden Craftsmanship, Art, Process, Creativity, Expectation“Between friends, differences in taste or opinion are irritating in direct proportion to their triviality.” W.H. Auden
Friendship, Differences, Perspective, Human Relationships, Irritations
W.H. Auden Friendship, Differences, Perspective, Human Relationships, Irritations“We would rather be ruined than changed. We would rather die in our dread than climb the cross of the moment and let our illusions die.” W.H. Auden
Fear, Resistance To Change, Suffering, Personal Truth, Existential Struggle
W.H. Auden Fear, Resistance To Change, Suffering, Personal Truth, Existential Struggle“Few people take an interest in Iceland, but in those few the interest is passionate.” W.H. Auden
Iceland, Passion, Niche Interest, Dedication, Exclusivity
W.H. Auden Iceland, Passion, Niche Interest, Dedication, Exclusivity“There's always another story. There's more than meets the eye.” W.H. Auden
Perspective, Hidden Truths, Complexity, Storytelling, Perception
W.H. Auden Perspective, Hidden Truths, Complexity, Storytelling, Perception“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“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“It's frightening how easy it is to commit murder in America. Just a drink too much. I can see myself doing it. In England, one feels all the social restraints holding one back. But here, anything can happen.” W.H. Auden
Violence, America, Cultural Differences, Social Restraints, Potential For Evil
W.H. Auden Violence, America, Cultural Differences, Social Restraints, Potential For Evil“Earth, receive an honored guest; William Yeats is laid to rest. Let the Irish vessel lie Emptied of its poetry.” W.H. Auden
Death, Tribute, Legacy, Poetry, Cultural Heritage
W.H. Auden Death, Tribute, Legacy, Poetry, Cultural Heritage“To my generation no other English poet seemed so perfectly to express the sensibility of a male adolescent. If I do not now turn to him very often, I am eternally grateful to him for the joy he gave me in my youth.” W.H. Auden
Poetry, Nostalgia, Male Adolescence, Gratitude, Literary Influence
W.H. Auden Poetry, Nostalgia, Male Adolescence, Gratitude, Literary Influence“All works of art are commissioned in the sense that no artist can create one by a simple act of will but must wait until what he believes to be a good idea for a work comes to him.” W.H. Auden
Art, Creativity, Inspiration, Artistic Process, Commissioning
W.H. Auden Art, Creativity, Inspiration, Artistic Process, Commissioning“In headaches and in worry Vaguely life leaks away, And Time will have his fancy To-morrow or today.” W.H. Auden
Life, Worry, Time, Futility, Human Experience
W.H. Auden Life, Worry, Time, Futility, Human Experience“In a world of prayer, we are all equal in the sense that each of us is a unique person, with a unique perspective on the world, a member of a class of one.” W.H. Auden
Diversity, Individuality, Spirituality, Equality, Human Experience
W.H. Auden Diversity, Individuality, Spirituality, Equality, Human Experience“One cannot review a bad book without showing off.” W.H. Auden
Criticism, Vanity, Literature, Reviewing, Intellectual Display
W.H. Auden Criticism, Vanity, Literature, Reviewing, Intellectual Display“We who must die demand a miracle. How could the Eternal do a temporal act, The Infinite become a finite fact? Nothing can save us that is possible: We who must die demand a miracle.” W.H. Auden
Mortality, Miracles, Eternity, Human Condition, Paradox
W.H. Auden Mortality, Miracles, Eternity, Human Condition, Paradox“No person can be a great leader unless he takes genuine joy in the successes of those under him.” W.H. Auden
Leadership, Joy, Success, Empowerment, Selflessness
W.H. Auden Leadership, Joy, Success, Empowerment, Selflessness“The primary theme of literature is that of loneliness — that every human being is unique and alone.” W.H. Auden
Literature, Loneliness, Individuality, Human Condition, Artistic Themes
W.H. Auden Literature, Loneliness, Individuality, Human Condition, Artistic Themes“That the speech of self-disclosure should be translatable seems to me very odd, but I am convinced that it is. The conclusion that I draw is that the only quality which all human being without exception possess is uniqueness: any characteristic, on the other hand, which one individual can be recognized as having in common with another, like red hair or the English language, implies the existence of other individual qualities which this classification excludes.” W.H. Auden
Uniqueness, Translation, Self-disclosure, Human Nature, Individuality
W.H. Auden Uniqueness, Translation, Self-disclosure, Human Nature, Individuality