Quote #20

Death and the devil, what are these to him? His being accuses him - and yet his face is firm In resolution, in absolute persistence; The folds of smiling do for steadiness; The face is its own fate - a man does what he must - And the body underneath it says: I am.

More from Randall Jarrell

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  3. Somewhere there must be Something that's different from everything. All that I've never thought of - think of me!
  4. The Southern past, the Southern present, the Southern future, concentrated into Gertrude's voice, became one of red clay pine-barrens, of c…
  5. The ways we miss our lives are life.
  6. The faculty - insofar as they were real Benton faculty, and not just nomadic barbarians - reasoned with the students, 'appreciated their po…
  7. The soul has no assignments, neither cooks Nor referees: it wastes its time. It wastes its time. Here in this enclave there are centuries F…
  8. It is better to entertain an idea than to take it home to live with you for the rest of your life.

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