People were always hungry, bullied, afraid, paranoid - so I just thought I'd show that in the novel in a kind of suffocating way. Fred D'Aguiar More Quotes by Fred D'Aguiar More Quotes From Fred D'Aguiar Once I became historically aware, I realized there are these formative moments of history tied around tragedy and disaster and sacrifice, that led people to survive and take stock and move on with some kind of notion of betterment. Fred D'Aguiar sacrificepeoplemoving Whenever I went to an historical moment that was sad or where something terrible happened, it was, for me, a learning moment, a teaching moment for those who survived. Fred D'Aguiar historicalmomentsteaching I usually feel something before I know it. Fred D'Aguiar knowsfeels I was on the wrong side of colonization. My ancestry is mostly mired in having the colonial experience as colonized subjects, first as slaves and then as independent subjects with a post-colonial experience. Fred D'Aguiar independentsidesfirsts At bottom, I'm a cheerful person. Fred D'Aguiar bottomcheerfulpersons I want a theory to come out to guide policy. Fred D'Aguiar guidestheorywant I think poetry can lead to policy, and I can hear the laughter when I say that. Fred D'Aguiar policylaughterthinking I love the fact that I can go to a museum now that tells me I'm in the postmodern age. Fred D'Aguiar agemuseumsfacts Magical realism as a declaration in the text is usually when someone can't speak and then they must be magically reinvigorated in some way. Fred D'Aguiar realismspeakway People seem very comfortable having a kind of Cheesecake Factory-type of life. Fred D'Aguiar factorieskindpeople If you're just mired in privilege, there's nothing to learn; learning appears to be over. Fred D'Aguiar privilegeifs I try to be even-handed and fair-minded about my view of history. I don't romanticize one side and demonize the other, though I do think that if you're suffering a lot, especially in the Bob Marley sense, suffering becomes a kind of university out of which you'll learn some hard lessons. Fred D'Aguiar sufferingviewsthinking Much of the visualizing is imaginative. Fred D'Aguiar visualizingimaginative I found it instructive and highly constructive as a writer to go to a point of disaster and come out with a feel for it and then some sort of a lesson based on feeling. Fred D'Aguiar disasterlessonsfeelings Because I write intuitively and image-by-image and moment-by-moment, my writing has to be powered by feelings and emotions. Fred D'Aguiar emotionfeelingswriting I can't stay engaged for years with a book unless it has feelings. It can't be an idea for me - it has to be a felt thing. Fred D'Aguiar bookyearsideas My grandfather is Portuguese. He betrayed what was expected of him and married my grandmother of African descent on my father's side. Fred D'Aguiar betrayedgrandmotherfather Bruce Lee, before he fought, he would try to visualize how the fight would go, because he was visualizing a victorious path out of the combat. Fred D'Aguiar fightingpathtrying People who are suffering have to visualize ways out of tragedy to actually get out of it. Fred D'Aguiar tragedysufferingpeople If you created a place in air where they're breathing and running around in, and then they speak in that fictional milieu, it's perfectly authenticated because the whole world relies on you, who've made it possible. Fred D'Aguiar breathingairrunning
