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Tony Harrison Quotes

Powerful Tony Harrison for Daily Growth

About Tony Harrison

Tony Harrison (born September 30, 1937) is an esteemed British poet, playwright, translator, and artist, renowned for his unique blend of classical references with contemporary Northern English dialect. Born in Leeds, West Yorkshire, he spent most of his life in the region, which greatly influenced his work. After attending Leeds Grammar School, Harrison studied Classics at St John's College, Cambridge. His fascination with classical literature and his working-class upbringing would become the cornerstone of his artistic career. Post-university, he pursued a career as a teacher, but eventually found his calling in poetry. Harrison's early works often dealt with themes of class, identity, and family history. His first collection, "The Lion and the Virgin" (1972), showcased these themes through a unique blend of formal poetry with Northern dialect. This collection earned him critical acclaim and established him as a significant voice in contemporary British literature. One of his most famous works is the TV-poem series "V" (1985) which includes "v", a monologue written for his mother, Victoria Harrison, recounting her life and death. The poem has been praised for its raw emotional power and its exploration of family, class, and loss. Harrison's works often incorporate visual art, music, and film, reflecting his multidisciplinary approach to creativity. His poetry collections include "The School of Eloquence" (1980), "Selected Poems" (1985), and "Splitting an Image: New & Selected Poems" (1994). As a playwright, he wrote "The Trackers of Oxyrhynchus" (2006) which was nominated for an Olivier Award. Tony Harrison continues to be celebrated as one of the most important British poets of the late 20th and early 21st centuries, bridging the gap between high culture and everyday life with his unique blend of form, content, and regional dialect.

Interpretations of Popular Quotes

"Wherever I am I miss where I was."

This quote by Tony Harrison expresses a sense of longing for past experiences or places, even when one is currently in another location. It suggests that memories and feelings associated with specific times or locations can remain deeply ingrained, causing a person to feel a sense of nostalgia or homesickness even while they are physically somewhere else. This feeling underscores our human tendency to find meaning and connection in the places we inhabit, and it serves as a reminder that our memories and emotions often transcend the boundaries of time and space.

"The past is a foreign country: they do things differently there."

The quote by Tony Harrison emphasizes that the past, as compared to the present, operates under different social, cultural, and historical norms. It implies a sense of detachment between contemporary society and history, where practices, beliefs, values, and behaviors in the past may seem alien or foreign to us today. This understanding can encourage empathy towards historical figures and events, and foster an appreciation for how perspectives have evolved over time.

"If you don't know where you come from, then you don't know where you are or where you're going."

Understanding one's heritage is crucial for self-awareness, identity formation, and future direction in life. Knowing one's roots helps us understand our values, beliefs, traditions, and cultural background, which shapes who we are and where we want to go in life. Without this knowledge, individuals may struggle with their sense of belonging or purpose, potentially leading to feelings of disorientation or aimlessness. Thus, self-discovery through understanding one's past is essential for personal growth and a meaningful future.

"Virtue is not its own reward."

Tony Harrison's quote, "Virtue is not its own reward," suggests that acting virtuously (moral goodness) does not guarantee immediate benefits or rewards for oneself. This idea underscores the notion that being good for the sake of personal gain is self-centered and may not be considered true virtue. The quote encourages individuals to embrace moral values not for external rewards, but for the greater good, integrity, and personal fulfillment that comes from acting with compassion, fairness, and respect for others. In essence, it highlights the intrinsic rather than extrinsic nature of virtue.

"I am what time, circumstance, history, have made of me."

This quote by Tony Harrison suggests that our identities are shaped by a complex interplay of factors outside our control, including the passage of time, personal circumstances, and historical contexts. Essentially, we are not solely responsible for who we are; rather, we are products of the larger forces that have influenced us throughout our lives and in society as a whole. It emphasizes that understanding oneself involves recognizing these factors and acknowledging their role in shaping one's identity.

I've written on public matters, but I don't understand how anyone could tout me as a possible poet laureate when I wrote a poem on the abdication of King Charles III or about the sex life of the Royals... anybody who knew my work would know I'm not a contender.

- Tony Harrison

Anybody, About, Laureate, III

There's a kind of despair about whether art can really do anything, but you have to incorporate that despair into the way you work. I try to soak my work in my sense of futility and fury.

- Tony Harrison

Work, Art, Kind, Fury

You litter poems with too much learning when you're younger.

- Tony Harrison

Younger, Poems, Too, Litter

A lot of my activity in the theatre, and even in writing poems, was a kind of retrospective aggro on the English teacher who wouldn't allow me to read poetry aloud.

- Tony Harrison

Activity, Allow, Read, Retrospective

Coming from a very inarticulate family made me try to speak for those who can't express themselves and created a need for articulation at its most ceremonial - poetry.

- Tony Harrison

Need, Made, Very, Inarticulate

Statues are one of the ways I try to test the traditions of European culture against the most modern destructive forces. I often make a point of seeking them out and have used them as mouthpieces in my film poetry, as with Heinrich Heine in 'The Gaze of the Gorgon.'

- Tony Harrison

Against, Used, Point, Traditions

I need to look back on my poetic ventures, make sense of them as a whole, and move forward... and to experiment without external demands.

- Tony Harrison

Need, Move, Poetic, External

For me, there is a paradox in poetry, which is like the paradox in tragedy. You have the most terrible subject, but it's in a form that is so sensually gratifying that it connects the surviving heart to the despairing intellect.

- Tony Harrison

Intellect, Which, Despairing, Gratifying

The first thing you see in my hallway is a large 18th-century bust of Milton, who stares at me as I watch TV and reminds me of the grave and committed role of the poet. Although he was blind, Milton had one of the most unswerving gazes of all English poets.

- Tony Harrison

Blind, Role, TV, Reminds

I really admire the great Japanese artists who could change their name three times in a lifetime. You could get rid of one and renew yourself.

- Tony Harrison

Change, Admire, Could, Renew

I think poems belong as much in the news pages as the literary pages. A lot of people throw aside the literary pages! Whereas everybody looks at the news section.

- Tony Harrison

Think, News, Everybody, Whereas

The ear will surrender even at those times when the eye wants to close, when the eye doesn't want to watch.

- Tony Harrison

Eye, Want, Will, Surrender

One of the important things about familiar form and metricality is that it draws attention to the physical nature of language: the spell-binding nature of it and the ceremony of articulation.

- Tony Harrison

Nature, About, Articulation, Ceremony

I wanted to learn Latin and Greek and become a poet and acquire power over language. I only understand this clearly in retrospect, that my ability to study came from a hunger to learn all the resources of articulation.

- Tony Harrison

Language, Study, Clearly, Articulation

I'm hoping to have a ninth decade like Matisse's.

- Tony Harrison

Decade, Like, Hoping, Ninth

Poetry is all I write, whether for books or readings or for the National Theatre or for the opera house and concert hall or even for TV.

- Tony Harrison

Opera, Opera House, TV, Readings

I was well read and knew languages, but I didn't want to become Ezra Pound. I wanted to write poetry that people like my parents might respond to.

- Tony Harrison

Like, Read, Languages, Pound

A poem, once it's written, is meant to be read with the inner voice of the person who reads it.

- Tony Harrison

Voice, Meant, Read, Meant To Be

'Night Mail' belongs quintessentially to the age of steam. It is impossible to simply go with the idea of remaking it.

- Tony Harrison

Mail, Idea, Belongs, Steam

Of course you have to provide for the vulnerable and the children, but also, the vulnerable and the children need art in some form or another. You need spiritual experiences that, I think, forms of art give best.

- Tony Harrison

Think, Give, Some, Forms

The Greek tragic mask is one of my main metaphors for the role of the poet. The eyes of the tragic mask are always open to witness even the worst, and the mouth is always open to make poetry from it. Neither ever close.

- Tony Harrison

Always, Role, Greek, Mask

It's been an obsession with me from childhood, the horrors of the twentieth century.

- Tony Harrison

Childhood, Been, Century, Twentieth

The imagination has its limits, and you have to face up to that.

- Tony Harrison

Imagination, Face, Up, Limits

I'd rather climb Everest than go for a walk in the park.

- Tony Harrison

Climb, Rather, Than, Everest

I hate the anglicanisation of culture, the idea that culture is genteel. It's not genteel.

- Tony Harrison

Culture, Hate, Idea, Genteel

I think that, as you get older, you want to be freer rather than more bound.

- Tony Harrison

Think, I Think, Rather, Freer

I love being on the road with others, with a camera, but also being alone writing poetry.

- Tony Harrison

Love, Alone, I Love, Camera

Looking back, fire images have been constant in my poetry. As a boy, it was my job to light the fire each morning, and I remember the celebratory bonfires at the end of the war. It was from staring into fire that I began my first poetry.

- Tony Harrison

Looking Back, I Remember, Staring

I often find myself quoting from Victor Hugo after one of my theatrical ventures. 'Now that my play is a failure,' he once said, 'I find I love it all the more.' I first quoted that after 'Square Rounds' at the Olivier in 1992.

- Tony Harrison

Love, Play, Theatrical, Ventures

You can make poems out of anger as well as tenderness. You can make poetry out of anything. It can be the ugliest of emotions. It doesn't have to be sweetness and light.

- Tony Harrison

Emotions, Tenderness, Sweetness

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