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8 quotes

Jean Cocteau

1889 - 1963

Jean Cocteau was a French poet, playwright, artist, and filmmaker, known for his versatile contributions to the arts in the 20th century. He was a central figure in the Parisian avant-garde and is celebrated for his unique style that blended surrealism, classicism, and modernism across various mediums.

  1. What people criticise in you, cultivate. It is you.

    Jean Cocteau
    #criticism#growth#selfacceptance

  2. The instinct of nearly all societies is to lock up anybody who is truly free. First, society begins by trying to beat you up. If this fails, they try to poison you. If this fails too, they finish by loading honors on your head.

    Jean Cocteau
    #freedom#society#conflict

  3. Since the day of my birth, my death began its walk. It is walking toward me, without hurrying.

    Jean Cocteau
    #death#life#inevitability

  4. The poet is a liar who always speaks the truth.

    Jean Cocteau
    #poet#truth#contradiction

  5. All good music resembles something. Good music stirs by its mysterious resemblance to the objects and feelings which motivated it.

    Jean Cocteau
    #music#emotion#inspiration

  6. An artist cannot speak about his art any more than a plant can discuss horticulture.

    Jean Cocteau
    #art#expression#limitation

  7. Life is a horizontal fall.

    Jean Cocteau
    #life#perspective#existence

  8. We must believe in luck. For how else can we explain the success of those we don’t like?

    Jean Cocteau
    #luck#success#bias