Wole Soyinka > Quotes

“The greatest threat to freedom is the absence of criticism.”
― Wole Soyinka

“A tiger doesn't proclaim his tigritude, he pounces”
― Wole Soyinka

“Romance is the sweetening of the soul
With fragrance offered by the stricken heart.”
― Wole Soyinka, The Lion and the Jewel

“Some of us – poets are not exactly poets. We live sometimes – beyond the word.”
― Wole Soyinka

“The man dies in all those that keep silent.”
― Wole Soyinka

“Books and all forms of writing are terror to those who wish to suppress truth.”
― Wole Soyinka, Selected Poems

“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

“Don't take shadows too seriously. Reality is your only safety. Continue to reject illusion.”
― Wole Soyinka

“The man dies in all who keep silent in the face of tyranny”
― Wole Soyinka , The Man Died: The Prison Notes of Wole Soyinka

“Well, I think the Yoruba gods are truthful. Truthful in the sense that i consider religion and the construct of deities simply an extension of human qualities taken, if you like, to the nth degree. i mistrust gods who become so separated from humanity that enormous crimes can be committed in their names. i prefer gods who can be brought down to earth and judged, if you like.”
― Wole Soyinka

“The hand that dips into the bottom of the pot will eat the biggest snail.”
― Wole Soyinka

“The arrogant elimination of the Djaouts of our world must nerve us to pursue our own combative doctrine, namely: that peaceful cohabitation on this planet demands that while the upholders of any creed are free to adopt their own existential absolutes, the right of others to do the same is thereby rendered implicit and sacrosanct. Thus the creed of inquiry, of knowledge and exchange of ideas, must be upheld as an absolute, as ancient and eternal as any other.”
― Wole Soyinka, The Last Summer of Reason

“For the fire consumes all but the arsonist.”
― Wole Soyinka, Climate of Fear: The Quest for Dignity in a Dehumanized World

“If you believe in democracy, are you not thereby obliged to accept, without discrimination, the fall-outs that come with a democratic choice, even if this means the termination of the democratic process itself?”
― Wole Soyinka, Climate of Fear: The Quest for Dignity in a Dehumanized World

“Today, the constituency of fear has become much broader, far less selective”
― Wole Soyinka, Climate of Fear: The Quest for Dignity in a Dehumanized World

“For now, let us simply observe that the assault on human dignity is one of the prime goals of the visitation of fear, a prelude to the domination of the mind and the triumph of power”
― Wole Soyinka

“Sadly, it is within the religious domain that the phenomenon of rhetorical hysteria takes its most devastating form. I am aware that, in some minds, this tends to be regarded as a delicate subject. Let me declare very simply that I do not share such a sentiment. There is nothing in the least delicate about the slaughter of innocents. We all subscribe to the lofty notions contained in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights but, for some reason, become suddenly coy and selective when it comes to defending what is obviously the most elementary of these rights, which is the right to life. One of my all-time favourite lines comes from the black American poet Langston Hughes. It reads, simply, 'There is no lavender word for lynch'.”
― Wole Soyinka, Climate of Fear: The Quest for Dignity in a Dehumanized World

“So, once again, back to the question - just what IS power?
Is it perhaps no more than a deadly mutation of ambition, one that may or may not translate into social activity? Any fool, any moron, any psychopath can aspire to the seizure and exercise of power, and of course the more psychopathic, the more efficient: Hitler, Pol Pot, Idi Amin, Sergeant Doe and the latest in the line of the unconscionably driven, our own lately departed General Sanni Abacha - all have proved that power, as long as you are sufficiently ruthless, amoral and manipulative, is within the grasp of even the mentally deficient.”
― Wole Soyinka, Climate of Fear: The Quest for Dignity in a Dehumanized World

“Books and all forms of writing have always been objects of terror to those who seek to suppress truth.”
― Wole Soyinka, The Man Died: The Prison Notes of Wole Soyinka

“O tigre não precisa de proclamar a sua trigritude. Salta sobre a sua presa e exerce-se tigre.”
― Wole Soyinka

“The fault, of course, is not in religion, but in the fanatic of every religion. Fanaticism remains the greatest carrier of the spores of fear, and the rhetoric of religion, with the hysteria it so readily generates, is fast becoming the readiest killing device of contemporary times.”
― Wole Soyinka, Climate of Fear: The Quest for Dignity in a Dehumanized World

“In any case, the Christian world is not one, neither is the Islamic, nor does their combined authority speak to or for the entire world, but the world of the fanatic IS one and it cuts across all religions, ideologies and vocations. The tributaries that feed the cesspool of fanaticism may ooze from sources separated by history, clime and race, by injustices and numerous privations, but they arrive at the same destination - the zone of unquestioning certitude - sped by a common impetus that licences each to proclaim itself the pure and unsullied among the polluted. The zealot is one that creates a Supreme Being, or Supreme Purpose, in his or her own image, then carries out the orders of that solipsistic device that commands from within, in lofty alienation from, and utter contempt of, society and community.”
― Wole Soyinka, Climate of Fear: The Quest for Dignity in a Dehumanized World

“— Позволю себе сказать, что не вижу особой враждебности между вами.
— Это же и есть цивилизация. Мы все тут очень цивилизованные.”
― Wole Soyinka, The Interpreters

“Everything is linked,' said an enraptured Baremboim on stage; 'everyone is linked, all our actions have ramifications, and music is a teacher of this interconnected reality.' There was, however, in the letter a mundane, prosaic footnote that nibbled at the very edges of possible understanding, since understanding must always be preceded by human curiosity. Perhaps it will vanish in the charged space between one suicide bomber and the next military bulldozer that buries human beings alive within the imagined security of their own homes; perhaps it will join other shards of recollected moments of curiosity and discovery, to weld into a vessel of receptivity and response.”
― Wole Soyinka, Climate of Fear: The Quest for Dignity in a Dehumanized World

“The man dies in all who keep silent in the face of tyranny.”
― Wole Soyinka

“of unseasonal but nonetheless good tidings.”
― Wole Soyinka, Chronicles from the Land of the Happiest People on Earth

“A tiger doesn't proclaim its tigerness; it jumps on its prey”
― Wole Soyinka

“In one form or the other, the quest for human dignity has proved to be one of the most propulsive elements for wars, civil strife and willing sacrifice. Yet the entitlement to dignity, enshrined among the 'human rights', does not aspire to being the most self-evident, essential need for human survival, such as food, or physical health. Compared to that other candidate for the basic impulse of human existence - self-preservation - it may even be deemed self-indulgent.”
― Wole Soyinka, Climate of Fear: The Quest for Dignity in a Dehumanized World

“The man dies in all who keep silent in the face of tyranny.-Wole Soyinka”
― Wole Soyinka

“the very least we can live with is an agreement that does not reduce us to slaves of imposition, but makes us partners of consent. Yes, we are compelled to make peace, we submit to force majeure, but leave us at least a piece of clothing to cover our nudity. This is the motivation behind every formula of diplomatic contrivance that is sometimes described as face-saving, and wise indeed is the victor who knows that, in order to shield his own rear from the elements, he must not denude his opponents.”
― Wole Soyinka, Climate of Fear: The Quest for Dignity in a Dehumanized World