“Readers may be divided into four classes: I. Sponges, who absorb all they read, and return it nearly in the same state, only a little dirtied. II. Sand-glasses, who retain nothing, and are content to get through a book for the sake of getting through the time. III. Strain-bags, who retain merely the dregs of what they read. IV. Mogul diamonds, equally rare and valuable, who profit by what they read, and enable others to profit by it also.”

English poet, literary critic, philosopher, and theologian

Samuel Taylor Coleridge was an English poet, literary critic, philosopher, and theologian associated with the Romantic movement in England. He lived from 1772 to 1834 and is known as a founder of that movement and as a member of the Lake Poets with William Wordsworth. He also worked with Charles Lamb, Robert Southey, and Charles Lloyd, sharing volumes and collaborating with them. His reputation rests on writing and criticism shaped by Romantic-era concerns, with work that ranged across poetry, ideas, and theology.