A public expectation, it has to be said, not of poetry as such but of political positions variously approvable by mutually disapproving groups. – Seamus Heaney
In fact, in lyric poetry, truthfulness becomes recognizable as a ring of truth within the medium itself. – Seamus Heaney
As writers and readers, as sinners and citizens, our realism and our aesthetic sense make us wary of crediting the positive note. – Seamus Heaney
Manifesting that order of poetry where we can at last grow up to that which we stored up as we grew. – Seamus Heaney
Short fiction is the medium I love the most, because it requires that I bring everything Ive learned about poetry – the concision, the ability to say something as vividly as possible – but also the ability to create a narrative that, though lacking a novels length, satisfies the reader. – Ron Rash