Poetry is one of the destinies of speech... One would say that the poetic image, in its newness, opens a future to language.
Gaston Bachelard

The great function of poetry is to give back to us the situations of our dreams.
Gaston Bachelard

In science one tries to tell people, in such a way as to be understood by everyone, something that no one ever knew before. But in poetry, it's the exact opposite.
Paul Dirac

I do not see how a man can work on the frontiers of physics and write poetry at the same time. They are in opposition.
Paul Dirac

In my late teenage years, I developed a real passion for it, and wrote a lot of poetry.
Danielle Steel

Poetry isn't a profession, it's a way of life. It's an empty basket; you put your life into it and make something out of that.
Mary Oliver

One difference between poetry and lyrics is that lyrics sort of fade into the background. They fade on the page and live on the stage when set to music.
Stephen Sondheim

In poetry everything which must be said is almost impossible to say well.
Paul Valery

Poetry is a mirror which makes beautiful that which is distorted.
Percy Bysshe Shelley

Poetry lifts the veil from the hidden beauty of the world, and makes familiar objects be as if they were not familiar.
Percy Bysshe Shelley

Poetry is a sword of lightning, ever unsheathed, which consumes the scabbard that would contain it.
Percy Bysshe Shelley

Poetry is the record of the best and happiest moments of the happiest and best minds.
Percy Bysshe Shelley

When superstition is allowed to perform the task of old age in dulling the human temperament, we can say goodbye to all excellence in poetry, in painting, and in music.
Denis Diderot

Poetry must have something in it that is barbaric, vast and wild.
Denis Diderot

Poetry is life distilled.
Gwendolyn Brooks

There's one of my new poems actually - is a good example of where my poetry has ended up. My earlier river poetry was more like a cross between Shelley and Dylan Thomas.
Robert Adamson

Well - I started writing - probably in the early 60s and by say '65-'66 I had read most of the poetry that had been published - certainly in the 20 years prior to that.
Robert Adamson

Well I guess the plan was to write poetry and publish books and make a living from writing poetry. That was a pretty ambitious plan I guess.
Robert Adamson

Poetry: the best words in the best order.
Samuel Taylor Coleridge

I wish our clever young poets would remember my homely definitions of prose and poetry; that is, prose = words in their best order; - poetry = the best words in the best order.
Samuel Taylor Coleridge