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Writers are human. I shudder to think how I must sometimes appear to others.

Wole Soyinka

It is the human potentials that interest me. I travel and everywhere I go I am amazed at the presence of Nigerians. The intelligence, integrity, productivity, initiative.
WOLE SOYINKA

Amaze Country Everywhere Human Interest People Person Potential Presence Travel
History teaches us to beware of the excitation of the liberated and the injustices that often accompany their righteous thirst for justice.
WOLE SOYINKA

Accompany Beware Christ Excitation History Injustice Justice Liberate Other Righteous Tech
Well, some people say I’m pessimistic because I recognize the eternal cycle of evil. All I say is, look at the history of mankind right up to this moment and what do you find?
WOLE SOYINKA

Cycle Eternal Evil People Pessimistic Recognizing Say Some
The hand that dips into the bottom of the pot will eat the biggest snail.
WOLE SOYINKA

Biggest Bottom Dip Eat Hard Pot Small
Arts and the Sciences are a natural symbiosis. They stem from the same human existential impulse – exploration. Exploration of what lies beneath the surface, and re-confuguration of elements of what we call reality.
WOLE SOYINKA

Existential Exploration Human Impulse Natural Same Science Stem Symbiosis
You cannot live a normal existence if you haven’t taken care of a problem that affects your life and affects the lives of others, values that you hold which in fact define your very existence.
WOLE SOYINKA

Care Effect Existence Life Live Normal Other Problem Taken
I know there are writers who get up every morning and sit by their typewriter or word processor or pad of paper and wait to write. I don’t function that way. I go through a long period of gestation before I’m even ready to write.
WOLE SOYINKA

Every Get Know Morning Paid Paper Processor Typewriter Wait Word Write Writer
Intolerance has always been with us, you know. The moment you have ideology, we have intolerance, whether it’s the secular ideology or, you know ideocratic ideology, which always brings with it some kind of intolerance.
WOLE SOYINKA

Always Been Ideology Intolerance Moment Secular Wether
There is only one home to the life of a river-mussel; there is only one home to the life of a tortoise; there is only one shell to the soul of man: there is only one world to the spirit of our race. If that world leaves its course and smashes on boulders of the great void, whose world will give us shelter?
WOLE SOYINKA

Home Idea Life Man Mussel One Only River Shell Soul Tortoise
We do not ask the mountain’s aid to crack a walnut.
WOLE SOYINKA

Ask Crack Mountain Not Walnut
I rarely use mythology for its own sake because, as a theatre person, the mythological figures are in fact humanity to the ninth degree and Yoruba mythology in particular has fascination of being one of the most humanised mythologies in the world.
WOLE SOYINKA

Because Degree Fact Figure Humanity Mythological Mythology Ninth Own Person Rarely Sake Theatre
I have one abiding religion-human liberty.
WOLE SOYINKA

Abide Body Have Human One Religion
But the ultimate lesson is just sit down and write. That’s all.
WOLE SOYINKA

All Lesson Sit Sown Ultimate Write
Mythology can be used, and has been used, even to re-state, you know, the very urgent problems of the world.
WOLE SOYINKA

Been Mythological Problem State Urgent Use Very World
What I teach is literary criticism and comparative literature and so on and that’s my function, but from time to time it’s possible for me actually to help a writer. I read something and something strikes me then, I feel I can talk to that writer about it.
WOLE SOYINKA

Actually Comparative Criticism Function Literacy Literature Possible Something Strike Talk Teach Time Writer
When you are looking for corruption, you should look at the entire stratum of the society, while some forms of corruption are direct, others are indirect.
WOLE SOYINKA

Corruption Direct Entire Form Look Other Society Some

Writers are human. I shudder to think how I must sometimes appear to others.

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Writers are human. I shudder to think how I must sometimes appear to others.

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Popular Authors

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