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Quote by Amiri Baraka

Work

S O S: Poems 1961-2013

This volume compiles a selection of poems written over a five-decade period, showcasing the author's evolution and exploration of themes through various poetic styles. more

Author

Amiri Baraka
Amiri Baraka

Amiri Baraka, born Leroy Jones, was an American writer, poet, playwright, political activist, and music critic. His work spanned poetry, novels, plays, and music criticism, and had a profound impact on American literature and black culture. more

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“The merry-go-round was running, yes, but... It was running backward. The small calliope inside the carousel machinery rattle-snapped its nervous-stallion shivering drums, clashed its harvest-moon cymbals, toothed its castanets, and throatily choked and sobbed its reeds, whistles, and baroque flutes.”

“Let me tell you something you haven't learned yet, something you learn only by living awhile. As you get older, you find that life begins to wear you down. Doesn't matter who you are or what you do, it happens. Experience, time, events - they all conspire against you to steal away your energy, to erode your confidence, to make you question things you wouldn't have given a second thought to when you were young. It happens gradually, a chipping away that you don't even notice at first, and then one day it's there. You wake up and you just don't have the fire anymore." He smiled.”