The white fathers told us: I think, therefore I am. The black goddess within each of us - the poet - whispers in our dreams: I feel, therefore I can be free.
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes the importance of emotions in the quest for freedom and self-identity.
Audre Lorde’s quote contrasts two philosophical perspectives: the rational thought represented by 'I think, therefore I am,' and the emotional wisdom expressed in 'I feel, therefore I can be free.' It highlights the significance of feeling and intuition in understanding oneself and achieving true freedom, suggesting that human experiences encompass more than just rational thought; they involve deep emotional awareness and connection to one's inner self.
In practice
In a speech about mental health, one could use this quote to highlight the importance of emotional well-being.
The fact that we are here and that I speak these words is an attempt to break that silence and bridge some of those differences between us, for it is not difference which immobilizes us, but silence. And there are so many silences to be broken.
There is no thing as a single-issue struggle because we do not live single-issue lives.
There are no new ideas. There are only new ways of making them felt.
I am not free while any woman is unfree, even when her shackles are very different from my own.
I am deliberate and afraid of nothing.
There's always someone asking you to underline one piece of yourself - whether it's Black, woman, mother, dyke, teacher, etc. - because that's the piece that they need to key in to. They want to dismiss everything else.
It was getting hard to keep all the things I didn't know inside me.
Whoever lives sincerely and encounters much trouble and disappointment without being bowed down is worth more than one who has always sailed before the wind and has only known prosperity.
The only thing a master can teach is how to learn about yourself. There are no secrets. They are only techniques to waken yourself.
If you have a problem with people living their lives and being authentically who they are, you really should go and do some soul-searching.
You can be a decent critic if you know about food, but to be a really good one, you need to know about life.
The course of our lives is determined by how we react--what we decide and what we do--at the darkest of times. The nature of that response determines a person's true worth and greatness.
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