Poets. . . are literal-minded men who will squeeze a word till it hurts.
Source: Apologia, in Harvard Law Review, (Cambridge), Jun 1972; repr. in Riders on Earth as Art and Law, 1978.
-- Archibald MacLeish, (May 7 1892-1982), US poet, playwright, teacher, public official; His concern for liberal democracy figured in much of his work, although his most memorable lyrics are of a more private nature.