Your demons will cause your angels to sing. Use the pain as fuel.
August WilsonRead
Part of what our problem as blacks in America is that we don't claim that. Partly, you see, because of the linguistic environment in which we live.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote speaks to the identity struggles and societal challenges faced by Black Americans.
August Wilson highlights a significant issue regarding the identity and self-claims of Black individuals in America, emphasizing that the societal and linguistic influences may lead to a reluctance in fully embracing one's heritage and culture. This reflection points to larger systemic problems that affect the perception and acceptance of Black identity within a broader American context.
Themes
IdentityCultureHeritageBlackAmericaSociety
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech addressing a group of young leaders, one might say: 'As August Wilson pointed out, we must proudly claim our identity despite societal pressures.'
More from August Wilson
All quotes βI think the blues is the best literature that we as blacks have created since we've been here. I call it our 'sacred book.' What I've attempted to do is to mine that field, to mine those cultural ideas and attitudes and give them to my characters.
August WilsonRead
All you need in the world is love and laughter. That's all anybody needs. To have love in one hand and laughter in the other.
August WilsonRead
I do - very specifically, I remember Bessie Smith; I used to collect 78 records that I would buy from the St Vincent de Paul store at five cents apiece, and I did this indiscriminately. I would just take whatever was there. And I listened to Patti Page and Walter Huston, 'September Song.'
August WilsonRead
I know some things when I start. I know, let's say, that the play is going to be a 1970s or a 1930s play, and it's going to be about a piano, but that's it. I slowly discover who the characters are as I go along.
August WilsonRead
When I first started writing plays I couldn't write good dialogue because I didn't respect how black people talked. I thought that in order to make art out of their dialogue I had to change it, make it into something different. Once I learned to value and respect my characters, I could really hear them. I let them start talking.
August WilsonRead
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