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People can save the world by the way they think and by the way they behave and what they hold to be important.

You don't have to save the world, but you can be in the world-that's where the beauty comes from.

We have to raise the consciousness; the only way poets can change the world is to raise the consciousness of the general populace.

If poetry alters the way in which the reader views the world, then it has had its desired effect.

The great function of poetry is to give back to us the situations of our dreams.

Now I think poetry will save nothing from oblivion, but I keep writing about the ordinary because for me it's the home of the extraordinary, the only home.

Poetry is this gorgeous, complex history rendered in verse and song, a blueprint that can lead you back into the world after you've walked into air.

Poetry gives us courage and sets us straight with the world. Poems are great companions and friends.

The poet is on the side of undeceiving the world.

I think that I have less conviction than ever that poetry matters - that poetry changes or saves anything or anyone. But, in fact, that's tremendously freeing. If it doesn't matter much, the stakes are lower and you can't really fail. It's insurrection. It's a tiny alphabet revolution. A secret. A psalm.