Alfred Edward Housman—poet, scholar, and the melancholic voice behind A Shropshire Lad—wrote with a quiet ache that still resonates through the years. His verses reflect a deep awareness of fleeting youth, lost love, and the quiet sorrows of life. With a style both simple and emotionally rich, Housman transformed grief into beauty, and reflection into art.
These quotes from A. E. Housman reveal the fragile, enduring truths of the human heart—capturing the very soul of English poetry.
15 A. E. Housman Quotes
1. “Because I liked you better than suits a man to say, it irked you, and I promised to throw the thought away.”
2. “Stars, I have seen them fall, but when they drop and die no star is lost at all from all the star-sown sky.”
3. “I, a stranger and afraid in a world I never made.”
4. “Give me a land of boughs in leaf, a land of trees that stand; where trees are fallen there is grief; I love no leafless land.”
5. “Into my heart an air that kills from yon far country blows: what are those blue remembered hills, what spires, what farms are those?”
6. “Good creatures, do you love your lives and have you ears for sense? Here is a knife like other knives, that cost me eighteen pence.”
7. “The thoughts of others were light and fleeting, of lovers’ meeting or luck or fame. Mine were of trouble, and mine were steady; so I was ready when trouble came.”
8. “When I was one-and-twenty I heard a wise man say, ‘Give crowns and pounds and guineas but not your heart away.’”
9. “The sum of things to be known is inexhaustible, and however long we read, we shall never come to the end of our story-book.”
10. “Now hollow fires burn out to black, and lights are fluttering low: square your shoulders, lift your pack and leave your friends and go.”
11. “Could man be drunk forever with liquor, love, or fights, lief should I rouse at morning and lief lie down of nights.”
12. “They put arsenic in his meat and stared aghast to watch him eat; they poured strychnine in his cup and shook to see him drink it up.”
13. “The house of delusions is cheap to build but drafty to live in.”
14. “The troubles of our proud and angry dust are from eternity, and shall not fail. Bear them we can, and if we can we must. Shoulder the sky, my lad, and drink your ale.”
15. “Life, to be sure, is nothing much to lose, but young men think it is, and we were young.”
A. E. Housman’s poetry speaks in quiet truths—about love unreturned, life undone, and youth remembered with a bittersweet ache. His words linger like fading light on hills long passed, offering comfort to those who walk life’s lonelier paths.
Which Housman quote touched you most? Share your thoughts in the comments—let’s reflect together on the enduring ache and beauty of his verse.
Emma Thompson
Hi, I'm Emma Thompson, founder of MyLittleDesire. I share relationship advice, love quotes, and thoughtful gift ideas to help you express your feelings and strengthen your bonds. Let's celebrate love together!
Email – business@mylittledesire.com
