Under adversity, under oppression, the words begin to fail, the easy words begin to fail. In order to convey things accurately, the human being is almost forced to find the most precise words possible, which is a precondition for literature. Rita Dove More Quotes by Rita Dove More Quotes From Rita Dove Equality and self-determination should never be divided in the name of religious or ideological fervor. Rita Dove determination religious self I grew up in Ohio, where civil-rights accomplishments had already begun to accelerate before Martin Luther King appeared. In hindsight, we know that many people, black and white, were instrumental in changing the Jim Crow status quo on all levels. Rita Dove black-and-white kings rights Can it be that even as one grows to fit the space one lives in, one cannot grow until there's space to grow? Rita Dove fit grows space It makes me furious to hear haters of all skin colors - especially Christian, Jewish, and Muslim fundamentalists - deride other people because of their different beliefs and lifestyles. Rita Dove skin-color christian people Rap is only one end of a whole spectrum of verbal play and virtuosity. Rap is geared for aural pleasure. Rita Dove rap pleasure play I didn't know writers could be real live people, because I never knew any writers. Rita Dove being-real real people The American Dream is a phrase we'll have to wrestle with all of our lives. It means a lot of things to different people. I think we're redefining it now Rita Dove dream mean thinking Going to the library was the one place we got to go without asking for permission. And they let us choose what we wanted to read. It was a feeling of having a book be mine entirely. Rita Dove library feelings book People write me from all over the country, asking me, and sometimes even telling me, what they think a poet laureate should do. I found that immensely valuable. Rita Dove writing country thinking I try to show what it is about language and music that enthralls, because I think those are the two elements of poetry. Rita Dove trying two thinking As an African-American, as a woman I think that I've been sensitized to the way in which history privileges the white male and the way in which certain aspects of history, the things that we are taught in school, the things that are handed down never, never entered the picture though they might have been very important. Rita Dove white school thinking Being Poet Laureate made me realize I was capable of a larger voice. There is a more public utterance I can make as a poet. Rita Dove utterance realizing voice It's unfortunate that sometimes in schools, there's this need to have things quantified and graded. Rita Dove sometimes school needs I prefer to explore the most intimate moments, the smaller, crystallized details we all hinge our lives on. Rita Dove hinges details intimate-moments I write short stories, and I wrote a play. Rita Dove stories play writing It's the combination of the intimate and the public that I find so exciting about being poet laureate. Rita Dove intimate combination poet To practice your scales, so to speak, in order play the symphony, is what you have to do as a young poet. Rita Dove practice play order Have you ever heard a good joke? If you've ever heard someone just right, with the right pacing, then you're already on the way to poetry. It's about using words in very precise ways and using gesture. Rita Dove using-words gestures way I was appointed Poet Laureate. It came totally out of the blue because most Poet Laureates had been considerably older than I. It was not something that I even had begun to dream about! Rita Dove poet dream blue For years, I had heard about the lack of interest in literature in the U.S. and I had complained about the lack of respect artists got here. In my heart, I failed to understand how people could fail to be moved by art. Rita Dove people years art
