There's a kind of optimism specifically within Christianity about the world - about whose side God is on. Well, I didn't have any of that in my background. I had physicality and chaos.
Ta-Nehisi CoatesRead
It was mostly through pop culture, through hip-hop, through Dungeons & Dragons and comic books that I acquired much of my vocabulary.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Pop culture can significantly influence language and vocabulary acquisition.
In this quote, Ta-Nehisi Coates reflects on how his understanding and use of vocabulary were shaped largely by his exposure to various elements of pop culture, including hip-hop, Dungeons & Dragons, and comic books. This suggests that informal and non-traditional sources of learning can play a vital role in education and linguistic development, highlighting the importance of diverse cultural influences in shaping one's language skills.
Themes
Pop CultureVocabularyEducationLanguageInfluence
In practice
Example use cases
During a lecture on the impact of media on language development.
More from Ta-Nehisi Coates
All quotes βWe've got in the habit of not really understanding how freedom was in the 19th century, the idea of government of the people in the 19th century. America commits itself to that in theory.
Ta-Nehisi CoatesRead
I never expected my writing to become as popular as it did.
Ta-Nehisi CoatesRead
It's hard for me to view Baltimore outside the context of what Baltimore has always been in my mind: a violent place.
Ta-Nehisi CoatesRead
If I could have anything - you know, and this is across the board for any presidential candidate - I would have a greater acknowledgment of history in our policy and in our affairs.
Ta-Nehisi CoatesRead
You can't make a direct comparison between middle-class African Americans and middle-class white Americans, affluent African Americans and affluent white Americans. The amount of wealth tends to be less.
Ta-Nehisi CoatesRead
Similar quotes
I went to what can only be described as a slum school in Salford - rough and full of trainee punks - but I was very lucky in that I had one inspiring teacher, John Malone, who gave the whole class an interest in romantic poetry.
John Cooper ClarkeRead
Sometimes parents squash students' interests because they are afraid of science or math. So they don't participate. You don't have to know the answers to engage kids; you just have to let them know it's important.
Mae JemisonRead
Teach by doing whenever you can, and only fall back upon words when doing it is out of the question.
Jean-Jacques RousseauRead
The fact that people can forget these simple truths when intellectualizing about children shows how far modern doctrines have taken us. They make it easy to think of children as lumps of putty to be shaped instead of partners in a human relationship.
Steven PinkerRead
Reading usually precedes writing. And the impulse to write is almost always fired by reading. Reading, the love of reading, is what makes you dream of becoming a writer.
Susan SontagRead
We still raise girls to look to other people for assurance they are attractive and smart, while boys are raised to determine their own value. Many girls are still made to feel it's not feminine to be good at science or math.
Eileen PollackRead