"Our poems will have failed if our readers are not brought by them beyond the poems"
- Muriel Rukeyser
About this Quote
This quote by Muriel Rukeyser speaks with the power of poetry to move and influence readers. She recommends that the supreme goal of a poem is to take the reader on a journey, to bring them beyond the words on the page and into a brand-new realm of understanding. She suggests that if a poem does not have this effect, then it has actually stopped working in its function. This talks to the power of poetry to stimulate emotion and to develop a connection between the reader and the poem. It likewise recommends that the poet has an obligation to develop a meaningful experience for the reader, to take them on a journey and to help them to get a much deeper understanding of the world. Eventually, Rukeyser's quote speaks with the power of poetry to move and inspire readers, and to bring them to a brand-new level of understanding.
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