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About this quote

What does it mean?
The poet values the art itself more than the abstract ideals it symbolizes.
In plain terms
Love the play, not the idea behind it.
What can you take from it?
Focus on the craft rather than the message.

Where it applies

  • writing
  • acting
  • criticism

Putting it to work

  • prioritize process over outcome
  • study form closely

Questions to consider

  • What do you value more in art?
  • Does symbolism matter more than execution?

Another view

Sometimes the meaning is more important than the medium.

More from William Butler Yeats

  1. I have found nothing half so good As my long-planned half solitude, Where I can sit up half the night With some friend that has the wit Not to allow his looks …

    Permalink to quote #165
  2. Now that my ladder's gone, I must lie down where all the ladders start In the foul rag-and-bone shop of the heart.

    Permalink to quote #167
  3. Because there is safety in derision I talked about an apparition, I took no trouble to convince, Or seem plausible to a man of sense.

    Permalink to quote #164

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