Yu believes that Goethe likely made those comments as a result of getting into a debate with someone. "Nevertheless, that's basically the way it is for me. Creativity comes from life. I write down observations about the vicissitudes of my life ...."
歌德說這話，余光中認為他約莫是和人辯論時故意說的，「不過我大體也是如此，創作來自生活，生活起了一點什麼變化就把它寫下來……」