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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

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
I have no money to give to you but I have ideas and organizational capacity.
WOLE SOYINKA

Capacity Give Idea Money Organizational You
Romance is the sweetening of the soul With fragrance offered by the stricken heart.
WOLE SOYINKA

Fragrance Heart Offer Romance Soul Sticken Sweetening
I never hesitated, as a student, in embracing the necessity of violence. In South Africa, I didn’t just accept it; I looked forward to it as a mission.
WOLE SOYINKA

Accept Country Entrance Forward Hesitate Look Mission Necessity Student Violence
Writers are human. I shudder to think how I must sometimes appear to others.
WOLE SOYINKA

Appear Human Other Shudder Sometimes Think Winter
I consider the process of gestation just as important as when you’re actually sitting down putting words to the paper.
WOLE SOYINKA

Actually Consider Gestation Important Process Put Sitmsown Word
The writer is the visionary of his people… He anticipates, he warns.
WOLE SOYINKA

Anticipate People Visionary Warm Water
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
I have one abiding religion-human liberty.
WOLE SOYINKA

Abide Body Have Human One Religion
I think that feeling that if one believed absolutely in any cause, then one must have the confidence, the self-certainty, to go through with that particular course of action.
WOLE SOYINKA

Absolute Believe Cause Certainty Confidence Feel Must One Self Think Through
The greatest threat to freedom is the absence of criticism.
WOLE SOYINKA

Absence Criticism Freedom Greatest Threat
Everybody knows that fraternities are a normal culture in all colleges. It exists in all colleges. President Clinton was a member of a fraternity. In fact, anybody who goes to College in the United States is a member of a College fraternity. There is absolutely nothing evil or occultic about fraternity.
WOLE SOYINKA

All College Cultural Everybody Fraternities Know Normal Wexist
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
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 said: “A tiger does not proclaim his tigritude, he pounces”. In other words: a tiger does not stand in the forest and say: “I am a tiger”. When you pass where the tiger has walked before, you see the skeleton of the duiker, you know that some tigritude has been emanated there.
WOLE SOYINKA

Other Prince Proclaim Say Stand Tiger Tignitude Word
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.

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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.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

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