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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

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
Power is domination, control, and therefore a very selective form of truth which is a lie.
WOLE SOYINKA

Control Domination Form Lie Power Selective Therefore Truth
Culture is a matrix of infinite possibilities and choices. From within the same culture matrix we can extract arguments and strategies for the degradation and ennoblement of our species, for its enslavement or liberation, for the suppression of its productive potential or its enhancement.
WOLE SOYINKA

Choice Culture Matrix Poosisblity
And I believe that the best learning process of any kind of craft is just to look at the work of others.
WOLE SOYINKA

Believe Best Kind Learn Look Other Process Work
I have no money to give to you but I have ideas and organizational capacity.
WOLE SOYINKA

Capacity Give Idea Money Organizational You
We live in a materialist world, and materialism appeals so strongly to humanity, no matter where.
WOLE SOYINKA

Appeal Humanity Live Materialist Matter Strongly
For me, a writer is already being the deuce of his mission, his occupation to society.
WOLE SOYINKA

Already Being Deuce Mission Occupation Society Writer
I don’t really consider myself a novelist, it just came out purely by accident.
WOLE SOYINKA

Accident Came Consider Myself Novelist Purely Really
Very conscious of the fact that an effort was being made to destroy my mind, because I was deprived of books, deprived of any means of writing, deprived of human companionship. You never know how much you need it until you’re deprived of it.
WOLE SOYINKA

Being Book Conscious Deprive Destroy Effort Fact Made Mean Mind Very Writing
My father used to tell me stories before I fell asleep. When the children would gather, at a certain point, I had a tendency to make up my own elementary variations on stories I had heard, or to invent totally new ones.
WOLE SOYINKA

Asleep Certain Children Father Fell Gather Point Story Use
No man beholds his mother’s womb Yet who denies it’s there? Coiled To the navel of the world is that Endless cord that links us all To the great Origin. If I lose my way. The trailing cord will bring me to the roots.
WOLE SOYINKA

All Behold Collect Denies Endless Link Man Mother Navel No Us Womb World
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
Don’t take shadows too seriously. Reality is your only safety. Continue to reject illusion.
WOLE SOYINKA

Continue Illusion Reality Reject Safety Seriously Shadow
I began writing early – very, very early… I was already writing short stories for the radio and selling poems to poetry and art festivals; I was involved in school plays; I wrote essays, so there was no definite moment when I said, ‘Now I’m a writer.’ I’ve always been a writer.
WOLE SOYINKA

Began Early Festival Poem Poetry Selling Short Story Very Writing
It’s the place to begin, always — to return to home, literally.
WOLE SOYINKA

Always Begin Home Literally Place Return
You have the entire gamut of human experience captured in the mythology of the Yoruba. This is what makes the Yoruba mythology a natural source material for me in my creative endeavours.
WOLE SOYINKA

Capture Entire Experience Gamut Human Make Mythology Natural Yoruba

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?

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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?

Related Topics

Popular Authors

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