Here is Marina Tsvetaeva on Boris Pasternak:
'He is unique and indivisible. His verse is the formula of his essence. The divine case of "couldn't be done any other way". Wherever there may be a dominance of "form" over "content", or of "content" over "form", no essence ever set foot. And you can't copy him; only garments can be copied. You'd have to be born as another him,' [Art in the Light of Conscience, pg. 22-23].
The same of course can be said of Tsvetaeva herself. She goes on:
'Of the demonstrable treasures in Pasternak (rhythms, metres, and so on), others will speak in their turn - and doubtless with no less feeling than I when I speak of the non-demonstrable treasures.
'That is the job of poetry specialists. My specialty is Life.'
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