Talk:Maria Callas

Format Changes

The reformatted page is very difficult to read, and the quotes much harder to attribute to a single person. Furthermore, some quotes are divided in two, whereas they were part of the same paragraph. The bold-type phrases and sentences make the highlighted sections appear as if they were the most important part of the quote, but that should be left to the reader to decide. The reader can also see if the quote is footnoted or not and that will tell him or her whether the material is sourced or unsourced. One could add "Citation Needed" to the unsourced material, but they should not be bunched into a totally separate section. Shahrdad 14:29, 26 April 2008 (UTC)

Though the use of bolding has occasionally been disputed, it is permitted here, (and long encouraged by me personally except on theme pages where the disputes are most prone to be contentious as to whose statements should be bolded, rather than what statements should be), but footnote formatting has regularly been discouraged and interlinear citations are the standard form on all pages for people. Unlike encyclopedia articles where footnotes to brief comments or citations of fact are provided to preserve narrative flow, our quote pages are designed so that one shouldn't have to flip to the bottom to find sourcing. There has been general agreement that the footnote format is not acceptable for standard citations, that most quotes or sections for quotes should be arranged chronologically, and quotes by others should generally be arranged "alphabetical by author" ~ Kalki 15:14, 26 April 2008 (UTC)

I put about 98% of this page together, and I disagree about the bolding. I typed many of these quotes from audio recordings of the interviews (there are no written versions of many of these quotes), and in none of the quotes were the bold-face sections the sections emphasized by the speaker. If the person uttering the quote verbally emphasized a certain phrase or word, bolding can be justified. Otherwise, the bolding emphasized word or phrases which the person doing the bolding considers most important and not necessarily those which the speaker or writer might have thought the most significant. For example, in the Martina Arroyo quote, the most important part is Callas's ability to give her runs words, not the fact that Arroyo adored her. In the Tebaldi quote, she emphasized the words BIG and FANTASTIC, for which I used Italics. Also many of the quotes were part of the same paragraph, but they were split into two different sections, which makes no sense at all. Can you please undo the bold type? I think that would make the quotes much more even and leave it to the readers' discretion to decide what the most important part of the paragraph is. Shahrdad 02:31, 28 April 2008 (UTC)

I removed the bold type, so that it will be up to the reader and not to the editor to decide what part of the quote is the most important. And since there are so many different quotes from different people, I added sub-sections with the name of the speaker. That way, when a reader is looking for a particular quote about Callas, they can quickly go to the paragraph pertaining to that particular speaker or writer. Shahrdad 18:05, 30 April 2008 (UTC)

Unsourced

Wikiquote no longer allows unsourced quotations, and they are in process of being removed from our pages (see Wikiquote:Limits on quotations); but if you can provide a reliable and precise source for any quote on this list please move it to Maria Callas.

• If I have stepped on some people at times because I am at the top, it couldn't be helped. What should I do if someone gets hurt... retire?

• If we do 10 Macbeths, we have 10 tenors, 10 baritones. No, I'm sorry, I can't do that, that is not art!
  • In regards to Sir Rudolph Bing's uncreative choices at the Met after he sent her an ultimatum telegram.

• My poor sight gives me an advantage. I can't see the people in the audience who are scratching their heads while I am lost in my role and giving everything I have to the drama.

• When my enemies stop hissing, I shall know I'm slipping.

• You are born an artist or you are not. And you stay an artist, dear, even if your voice is less of a fireworks. The artist is always there. --Antiquary 20:10, 31 March 2009 (UTC)