A primary function of art and thought is to liberate the individual from the tyranny of his culture in the environmental sense and to permit him to stand beyond it in an autonomy of perception and judgment.

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• Lionel Trilling:

  The poet may be used as a barometer, but let us not forget that he is also part of the weather.

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• Lionel Trilling:

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• Lionel Trilling:

  It is now life and not art that requires the willing suspension of disbelief.