"Poetry finds first and seeks afterwards. It is the quarry of..." — Jean Cocteau

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Poetry finds first and seeks afterwards. It is the quarry of exegesis which is unquestionably a Muse because it is apt to decipher our codes, to illuminate our inner darkness, and to tell us about what we were unaware of having said.

— Jean Cocteau

as transcribed by Stephen. Ullmann

Language and Style

Poetry Creative Writing Exegesis

About This Quote

The source of this statement was recorded by Stephen Ullmann in his book Language and Style: Collected Papers of "Stephen Ullmann"

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