MEANING (3)

Anyone who asks about the meaning of a poem wants to know more about it than the poet himself. The meaning of a poem is the poem itself and can only be the poem itself.

Georges Perros





What one admires in good poetry, is craftsmanship. Poets don't look at each other for some philosophical meaning they give to life but they look at technical skills. Workmanship of the medium, that is what can be appreciated with others.

Derek Walcott





More than ever before poetry offers meaning, because it is not troubled by vague definitions about social relevance or calculable efficiency. Poetry is imagination and the world never has enough of that.

Koen Van Bockstal





www.alberthagenaars.nl


Also see:
Dutch poetry in Indonesian language, translated by Siti Wahyuningsih and Albert Hagenaars

Critical reviews on modern Dutch poetry