Quotes from William Empson

My heart pumps yet the poison draught of you.

Life involves maintaining oneself between contradictions that can't be solved by analysis.

It seems unpleasantly refined to put things off till someone knows.

I'm afraid I take ... this rather clinical view of love: it's saving you from madness. I'm not so enthusiastic as other poets have been.

The heart of standing is you cannot fly.

To produce pure proletarian art the artist must be at one with the worker; this is impossible, not for political reasons, but because the artist never is at one with any public.

Liberal hopefulness Regards death as a mere border to an improving picture.

Buddhists and Christians contrive to agree about death Making death their ideal basis for different ideals. The Communists however disapprove of death Except when practical.

Shall I make it clear, boys, for all to apprehend, Those that will not hear, boys, waiting for the end, Knowing it is near, boys, trying to pretend, Sitting in cold fear, boys, waiting for the end?