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You somehow have to kill yourself. This is asked of people who haven’t got the tools to understand that it’s all a social construction, and that they shouldn’t inferiorize themselves.

Abdellah Taia

To do that I knew I had to learn French. In order to practice I started to write journals in French. The effort I made to master what I regarded a bad thing – a language owned by the rich Moroccans – brought me the ability to write.
ABDELLAH TAIA

French Journal Learn Master Order Practise
My family spent many years sleeping side by side in the same room. It’s important for me to not separate myself from them or to say that I’ve suffered more than they have because I’m gay.
ABDELLAH TAIA

Family Gay Room Same Sleep Sleeping Year
We all suffered from the same political rejection, and from poverty. When you’re starving with eleven other people in the same room, you become connected to them forever. We were all hungry at the same time.
ABDELLAH TAIA

People Political Poverty Rejection Suffered
Everyone hasn’t got the power to free oneself and go away to another place or country… No one is capable of freeing oneself from society.
ABDELLAH TAIA

Capable Free Freedom Oneself Power
Any gay person understands at some point that he or she has to disappear, to become invisible. That’s very difficult.
ABDELLAH TAIA

Difficult Disappear Gay Kid People Point Understand
Many Europeans think that all Moroccans speak French, but no. I had to make an effort to learn it when I studied French literature at the university in Rabat.
ABDELLAH TAIA

Effort French Speak Thinking
This is asked of little kids. But I still live in the same outcome.
ABDELLAH TAIA

Asked Kid Little Outcome Same
I hate to express political ideas directly in a book. I don’t want my books to be seen as an expression of this or that political idea. At the same time I want to show a kind of rebellion and transgression, something further.
ABDELLAH TAIA

Book Directly Expression Hate Political Rebellion
So many people and institutions are against homosexuals that, as a homosexual, you can’t waste your time by trying to convince them that you’re a good person.
ABDELLAH TAIA

Against Homosexuals Institution People Trying Waste
Writing and making films aren’t different things to me. Or maybe it has become so, now. Making film is a very long process and you have to be physically strong.
ABDELLAH TAIA

Different Film Long Process Strong Writing
You somehow have to kill yourself. This is asked of people who haven’t got the tools to understand that it’s all a social construction, and that they shouldn’t inferiorize themselves.
ABDELLAH TAIA

Construction Kill People Social Someone Understand Yourself
I started to write because of my dream to become a filmmaker. I got to know about a film school in Paris and it was my goal to get there.
ABDELLAH TAIA

Dream Filmmaker Goal Paris School Writing
The literary work is more mystical, because it’s only the writer, and connected to something inside.
ABDELLAH TAIA

Connected Inside Literary Mystical Writer
People think that I only write about homosexuality, but that’s not true.
ABDELLAH TAIA

Homosexuality People Thinking True Writing

You somehow have to kill yourself. This is asked of people who haven’t got the tools to understand that it’s all a social construction, and that they shouldn’t inferiorize themselves.

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You somehow have to kill yourself. This is asked of people who haven’t got the tools to understand that it’s all a social construction, and that they shouldn’t inferiorize themselves.

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Popular Authors

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