John Ciardi

The Constitution gives every American the inalienable right to make a damn fool of himself.

— John Ciardi

Modern art is what happens when painters stop looking at girls and persuade themselves they have a better idea.

— John Ciardi

A neighborhood is a residential area that is changing for the worse.

— John Ciardi

A university is what a college becomes when the faculty loses interest in students.

— John Ciardi

Every parent is at some time the father of the unreturned prodigal, with nothing to do but keep his house open to hope.

— John Ciardi

Love is the word used to label the sexual excitement of the young, the habituation of the middle-aged, and the mutual dependence of the old.

— John Ciardi

There is nothing wrong with sobriety in moderation.

— John Ciardi

You do not have to suffer to be a poet. Adolescence is enough suffering for anyone.

— John Ciardi