"Strange about parents. We have such easy access to them and such daunting problems of communication."

Experience

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Thematic Reflection

This quotation examines the core nature of Experience as articulated by James Merrill. Within historical and literary traditions, reflections on Experience provide actionable mental models, challenging individuals to evaluate personal ethics, self-discipline, and daily actions.

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About James Merrill

James Ingram Merrill was an American poet. He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for poetry in 1977 for Divine Comedies. His poetry falls into two distinct bodies of work: the polished and formalist lyric poetry of his early career, and the epic narrative of occult communication with spirits and angels, titled The Changing Light at Sandover, which dominated his later career. Although most of his published work was poetry, he also wrote essays, fiction, and plays.

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More by James Merrill

"And, as I have said, it's made me think twice about the imagination. If the spirits aren't external, how astonishing the mediums become! Victor Hugo said of his voices that they were like his own mental powers multiplied by five."

— James Merrill
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More about Experience

"Adolescence is the conjugator of childhood and adulthood."

— Louise J. Kaplan
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"Roses are red, violets are blue, I'm schizophrenic, and so am I."

— Oscar Levant
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"I didn't start traveling abroad until I was 17, but I spent many summers on the beaches of Donegal in Ireland."

— Caitriona Balfe
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"Baseball changes through the years. It gets milder."

— Babe Ruth
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