To me, there is nothing higher than fiction. Nothing. It is fundamentally who I am. I am a teller of stories. For me, that's the only way I can make sense of the world, with all the dance that it involves.
Arundhati RoyRead
You begin to realize that hypocrisy is not a terrible thing when you see what overt fascism is compared to sort of covert, you know, communal politics which the Congress has never been shy of indulging in.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Hypocrisy can seem less severe when contrasted with the harsh realities of overt fascism.
In this quote, Arundhati Roy reflects on the nature of hypocrisy in politics, suggesting that once one witnesses the extreme and overt nature of fascism, the subtler forms of hypocrisy, often found in communal politics, may appear less alarming. She critiques the political landscape, indicating that while hypocrisy is not ideal, it pales in comparison to the dangers posed by authoritarian regimes.
Themes
HypocrisyFascismPoliticsCommunalCritique
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used during a debate on political ethics and integrity.
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Caste is about dividing people up in ways that preclude every form of solidarity, because even in the lowest castes, there are divisions and sub-castes, and everyone's co-opted into the business of this hierarchical, silo-ised society.
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When I decided to write 'The God of Small Things', I had been working in cinema. It was almost a decision to downshift from there. I thought that 300 people would read it. But it created a platform of trust.
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In California, there are huge problems because of dams. I'm against big dams, per se, because I think that they are economically unfeasible. They're ecologically unsustainable. And they're hugely undemocratic.
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To call someone 'anti-American', indeed, to be anti-American, is not just racist, it's a failure of the imagination.
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