Tuesday, 24 December 2013

Poem: "Poetry is a kind of lying" by Jack Gilbert


Poetry is a kind of lying, 
necessarily. To profit the poet
or beauty. But also in
that truth may be told only so. 

Those who, admirably, refuse
to falsify (as those who will not
risk pretensions) are excluded 
from saying even so much. 

Degas said he didn't paint
what he saw, but what 
would enable them to see
the thing he had. 

     -- Jack Gilbert

About the poet:

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