You speak of Lord Byron and me - there is this great difference between us. He describes what he sees - I describe what I imagine. Mine is the hardest task.
Attribution disputed; shown as originally published.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Byron says he describes reality while the speaker imagines, making imagination harder than observation.
- In plain terms
- Imagining is harder than describing what you see.
- What can you take from it?
- Creative imagination requires more effort than simple description.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- What does imagination add to your work?
- When is observation more reliable than imagination?
Another view
Imagining can be vague and less grounded in reality.
More from Lord Byron
Mad, bad and dangerous to know.
Permalink to quote #121 If they had said that the sun or the moon had gone out of the heavens, it could not have struck me with the idea of a more awful and dreary blank in creation t…
Permalink to quote #123 If I could envy any man for successful ill nature I should envy Lord Byron for his skill in satirical nomenclature.
Permalink to quote #120
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