Submission to suffering is a form of annihilation, but transformation of suffering rekindles a faith that gives life. Paulo Freire More Quotes by Paulo Freire More Quotes From Paulo Freire 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. Paulo Freire teachingdoubtlistening It is not possible to remake this country, to democratize it, humanize it, make it serious, as long as we have teenagers killing people for play and offending life, destroying the dream, and making love unviable. If education alone cannot transform society, without it society cannot change either. Paulo Freire teenagerdreamcountry I am dealing with people and not with things. And, because I am dealing with people, I cannot refuse my wholehearted and loving attention, even in personal matters, where I see that a student is in need of such attention. Paulo Freire teachingpeopleneeds Indeed, some "revolutionaries" brand as "innocents," "dreamers," or even "reactionaries"; those who would challenge this educational practice. But one does not liberate people by alienating them. Authentic liberation - the process of humanization - is not another deposit to be made in men. Paulo Freire educationalpracticemen Whether the teacher is authoritarian, undisciplined, competent, incompetent, serious, irresponsible, involved, a lover of people and of life, cold, angry with the world, bureaucratic, excessively rational, or whatever else, he/she will not pass through the classroom without leaving his or her mark on the students. Paulo Freire teachingteacherpeople Revolution is born as a social entity within the oppressor society. Paulo Freire bornrevolutionsocial At times, I have been criticized by some philosophers of education, who place me in postures that they classify pejoratively as 'revolutionary.' But I have had the satisfaction of being invited to work in societies making progressive efforts without wavering. They were changing, and so they called on me. Paulo Freire waveringeffortsatisfaction The role of the educator is one of tranquil possession of certitude in regard to the teaching of not only contents but also of 'correct thinking.' Paulo Freire educationalteachingphilosophy How can I be an educator if I do not develop in myself a caring and loving attitude toward the student, which is indispensable on the part of one who is committed to teaching and to the education process itself. Paulo Freire caringteachingattitude A fact which is not denied but whose truths are rationalized loses its objective base. It ceases to be concrete and becomes a myth created in defense of the class of the perceiver. Paulo Freire defenseclassfacts We must be forewarned that only rarely does a text easily lend itself to the reader's curiosity... the reading of a text is a transaction between the reader and the text, which mediates the encounter between the reader and writer. It is a composition between the reader and the writer in which the reader "rewrites" the text making a determined effort not to betray the author's spirit. Paulo Freire effortlearningreading For people, 'here' signifies not merely a physical space, but also an historical space. Paulo Freire spacehistoricalpeople It's really not possible for someone to imagine himself/herself as a subject in the process of becoming without having at the same time a disposition for change. And change of which she/he is not merely the victim but the subject. Paulo Freire becomingimaginevictim 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. Paulo Freire splitssleepworld Without a minimum of hope, we cannot so much as start the struggle. Paulo Freire minimumstruggle Individuals who were submerged in reality, merely feeling their needs, emerge from reality and perceive the causes of their needs. Paulo Freire causesfeelingsreality It is essential for the oppressed to realize that when they accept the struggle for humanization they also accept, from that moment, their total responsibility for the struggle. Paulo Freire essentialsresponsibilitystruggle It would be a contradiction in terms if the oppressors not only defended but actually implemented a liberating education. Paulo Freire contradictiontermwould-be With the establishment of a relationship of oppression, violence has already begun. Never in history has violence been initiated by the oppressed. How could they be the initiators, if they themselves are the result of violence? How could they be the sponsors of something objective whose objective inauguration called forth their existence as oppressed? There would be no oppressed had there been no prior of violence to establish their subjugation. Paulo Freire oppressionviolencewould-be The object of a dialogical-liberterian action is not to 'dislodge' the oppressed from a mythological reality in order to 'bind' them to another reality. On the contrary, the object of dialogical action is to make it possible for the oppressed, by perceiving their adhesion, to opt to transform an unjust reality." "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 cuttingorderreality
