“I have no objection to being called a historical poet.” Accepting the connection between his verse and the past he inhabited imaginatively · Conversation / critical statement, as commonly attributed History Memory Poetry
“The poet must be above all things a man of the world.” Linking poetic insight with broad human and historical awareness · Essay / prose statement on poetry Art Poetry Truth
“I have tried to write about things which are not entirely foreign to me.” Emphasizing lived experience as the basis of artistic truth · Prose statement on his poetic method Art Memory Truth
“I am a poet of old age.” A concise description of his recurring concern with maturity, memory and mortality · Conversation / interview, as commonly reported Age Memory Mortality
“I am not a poet. I am a historian.” Presenting his poetry as a record of historical experience and consciousness · Conversation, as reported in biographical accounts Memory Poetry Time
