The behavior of the oppressed is a prescribed behavior, following as it does the guidelines of the oppressor.
Paulo FreireRead
The world is split between those who do not sleep because they are hungry and those who do not sleep because they are afraid of those who are hungry.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote highlights the division in society between the oppressed and the oppressors, illustrating the struggles of hunger and fear.
Paulo Freire's quote encapsulates the stark reality of social inequality, describing a world where one group suffers from hunger so severely that they cannot sleep, while another group, who is not in need, is plagued by fear of those who are hungry. This illustrates the consequences of systemic injustice and the moral implications of living in a world where such disparities exist, urging a reflection on our responsibilities towards each other.
Themes
HungerFearInequalitySocial JusticeOppression
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about social reform, highlighting inequality.
More from Paulo Freire
All quotes βHow can the oppressed, as divided, unauthentic beings, participate in developing the pedagogy of their liberation?
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Critical and liberating dialogue, which presupposes action, must be carried on with the oppressed at whatever the stage of their struggle for liberation. The content of that dialogue can and should vary in accordance with historical conditions and the level at which the oppressed perceive reality.
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This is the sense in which I am obliged to be a listener. To listen to the student's doubts, fears, and incompetencies that are part of the learning process. It is in listening to the student that I learn to speak with him or her.
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This pedagogy makes oppression and its causes objects of reflection by the oppressed, and from that reflection will come their necessary engagement in the struggle for their liberation. And in the struggle this pedagogy will be made and remade
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The oppressors do not perceive their monopoly on having more as a privilege which dehumanizes others and themselves. They cannot see that, in the egoistic pursuit of having as a possessing class, they suffocate in their own possessions and no longer are; they merely have.
Paulo FreireRead
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