Bertrand Russell: The Harm That Good Men Do，1926:
“...It is difficult to think of any instance of a poet who
was 'good' at the times when he was writing good poetry. Dante was deported for
subversive propaganda; Shakespeare, to judge by the Sonnets, would not have
been allowed by American immigration officers to land in New York. It is of the
essence of a 'good' man that he supports the Government; therefore, Milton was good
during the reign of Cromwell, and bad before and after; but it was before and
after that he wrote his poetry - in fact most of it was written after he had
narrowly escaped hanging as a Bolshevik. Donne was virtuous after he became
Dean of St Paul's, but all his poems were written before that time, and on
account of them his appointment caused a scandal. Swinburne was wicked in his
youth, when he wrote Songs Before Sunrise in praise of those who fought for
freedom; he was virtuous in his old age, when he wrote savage attacks on the
Boers for defending their liberty against wanton aggression. It is needless to
multiply examples; enough has been said to suggest that the standards of virtue
now prevalent are incompatible with the production of good poetry....”
“Oh. Wow. Another sonnet.”
Artist: Trevor Spaulding, The New Yorker, October 2015
“Oh. Wow. Another sonnet. Now, say goodbye to your H1B visa application."
