I have read all that the wise men have written,and all the secrets of philosophy are mine,yet for want of a red rose my life is made wretched. Cultural Notes Notice the sarcastic tone of the author when he had the Student refer to the "wise men".As a champion of "art for art's sake", the author argues that one should not paint or write for financial,political or religious reasons.He therefore keeps poking fun at the Student,the professor,the dusty heavy books,etc.. I have read all that the wise men have written, and all the secrets of philosophy are mine, yet for want of a red rose my life is made wretched. Cultural Notes Notice the sarcastic tone of the author when he had the Student refer to the “wise men”. As a champion of “art for art’s sake”, the author argues that one should not paint or write for financial, political or religious reasons. He therefore keeps poking fun at the Student, the professor, the dusty heavy books, etc