History is how we have learnt to think about ourselves. It's not as though the Greeks and Romans are static entities out there to be discovered and translated. We make them speak, we talk to them, and they inform what we say.
Mary BeardRead
We are sold the idea of a refugee as a tiny child sitting crying, as a way of raising money, but elderly ladies and kids largely can't move. The demographic is mostly young men.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote challenges the stereotypical portrayal of refugees, highlighting the reality that most are young men.
Mary Beard's quote critiques the often simplistic and emotionally charged images used in fundraising campaigns for refugees, which typically depict helpless children and elderly individuals. In doing so, she draws attention to the demographic realities of refugees, pointing out that many are young men who face significant challenges and mobility issues, thus suggesting that a more nuanced understanding of refugees is necessary to address their actual circumstances and needs effectively.
Themes
RefugeePerceptionDemographicsHumanityRealities
In practice
Example use cases
During a speech on humanitarian aid, one could use this quote to emphasize the importance of understanding the true demographic of refugees.
More from Mary Beard
All quotes →I don't think that we are completely dominated by what we have inherited from the past, but it is the case that as far back as you can go - just to Homer, but also to the literature of Rome, the literature of the Middle Ages and Renaissance - what you will find is that women's voices are not taken seriously.
Mary BeardRead
What politicians do is they never get the rhetoric wrong, and the price they pay is they don't speak the truth as they see it. Now, I will speak truth as I see it, and sometimes I don't get the rhetoric right. I think that's a fair trade-off.
Mary BeardRead
I'd quite like to be in Caligula's court - living in the back room somewhere and just being able to observe.
Mary BeardRead
Whatever you say about popular culture, people like people who know things, who are experts, and it doesn't particularly matter what they look like.
Mary BeardRead
There is no way, absolutely no way, that I would want people to stop reading the 'Odyssey.' But I want them to read it with their eyes open. To notice it and then to think what it says about us.
Mary BeardRead
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