Dialogue cannot exist without humility. Paulo Freire More Quotes by Paulo Freire More Quotes From Paulo Freire [T]he more radical the person is, the more fully he or she enters into reality so that, knowing it better, he or she can transform it. This individual is not afraid to confront, to listen, to see the world unveiled. This person is not afraid to meet the people or to enter into a dialogue with them. This person does not consider himself or herself the proprietor of history or of all people, or the liberator of the oppressed; but he or she does commit himself or herself, within history, to fight at their side. Paulo Freire fightingknowingreality I hope at least that the following will endure: my trust in the people, and my faith in men and women, and in the creation of a world in which it will be easier to love Paulo Freire menpeopleworld The trust of the people in the leaders reflects the confidence of the leaders in the people. Paulo Freire trustleaderpeople If I am a pure product of genetic, cultural, or class determination, I have no responsibility for my action in the world and, therefore, it is not possible for me to speak of ethics. Of course, this assumption of responsibility does not mean that we are not conditioned genetically, culturally, and socially. It means that we know ourselves to be conditioned but not determined. Paulo Freire determinationresponsibilitymean If it is in speaking their word that people, by naming the world, transform it, dialogue imposes itself as the way by which they achieve significance as human beings. Paulo Freire peoplewayworld To teach is part of the very fabric of learning. Paulo Freire torturefabricteacher One of my major preoccupations is the approximation between what I say and what I do, between what I seem to be and what I am actually becoming. Paulo Freire educationalliteraturephilosophy This is the road I have tried to follow as a teacher: living my convictions; being open to the process of knowing and being sensitive to the experience of teaching as an art; being pushed forward by the challenges that prevent me from bureaucratizing my practice; accepting my limitations, yet always conscious of the necessary effort to overcome them and aware that I cannot hide them because to do so would be a failure to respect both my students and myself as a teacher. Paulo Freire educationalteacherart Reflection and action must never be undertaken independently. Paulo Freire discernmentreflectionaction There is, in fact, no teaching without learning. Paulo Freire educationalteachingphilosophy In order for the oppressed to unite they must first cut the umbilical cord of magic and myth which binds them to the world of oppression; the unity which links them to each other must be of a different nature. Paulo Freire magiccuttingorder Every society needs to examine itself in relation to other societies. Paulo Freire relationneeds The oppressors develop a series of methods precluding any presentation of the world as a problem and showing it rather as a fixed entity, as something given--something to which people, as mere spectators, must adapt. Paulo Freire problempeopleworld But almost always, during the initial stage of the struggle, the oppressed, instead of striving for liberation, tend themselves to become oppressors, or sub oppressors. The very structure of their thought has been conditioned by the contradiction of the concrete, existential situation by which they were shaped. Their ideal is to be men; but for them to be men is to be oppressors Paulo Freire existentialstrugglemen The educator has the duty of not being neutral. Paulo Freire educatordutyteacher To speak a true word is to transform the world. Paulo Freire praxisspeakworld The behavior and reactions of the oppressed, which lead the oppressor to practice cultural invasion, should evoke from the revolutionary a different theory of action. What distinguishes revolutionary leaders from the dominant elite is not only their objectives, but their procedures. Paulo Freire revolutionary-leadersinvasionpractice The parent-child relationship in the home usually reflects the objective cultural conditions of the surrounding social structure. If the conditions which penetrate the home are authoritarian, rigid, and dominating, the home will increase the climate of oppression. As these authoritarian relations between parents and children intensify, children in their infancy increasingly internalize the paternal authority. Paulo Freire educationalphilosophychildren Authentic thinking, thinking that is concerned about reality, does not take place in ivory tower isolation, but only in communication. If it is true that thought has meaning only when generated by action upon the world, the subordination of students to teachers becomes impossible. Paulo Freire communicationteacherreality Indeed, the interests of the oppressors lie in 'changing the consciousness of the oppressed, not the situation which oppresses them. Paulo Freire interestconsciousnesslying
