I’ve spent my entire writing life trying to make sure that the white gaze was not the dominant one in any of my books.
TONI MORRISONThe function of freedom is to free someone else.
More Toni Morrison Quotes
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In this country American means white. Everybody else has to hyphenate.
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A writer’s life and work are not a gift to mankind; they are its necessity.
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Black people have always been used as a buffer in this country between powers to prevent class war.
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Perhaps that’s what all human relationships boiled down to: Would you save my life? or would you take it?
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Anything dead coming back to life hurts.
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Books are a form of political action. Books are knowledge. Books are reflection. Books change your mind.
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The best art is political and you ought to be able to make it unquestionably political and irrevocably beautiful at the same time.
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Liberation means you don’t have to be silenced.
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Passion is never enough; neither is skill.
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You have to be a little tough, and rely on yourself. And tell people ‘No’.
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I get angry about things, then go on and work.
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For me the history of the place of black people in this country is so varied, complex and beautiful. And impactful.
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In times of dread, artists must never choose to remain silent. This is precisely the time when artists go to work.
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Oppressive language does more than represent violence; it is violence; does more than represent the limits of knowledge; it limits knowledge.
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If there is a book that you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, you must be the one to write it.
TONI MORRISON






