The older you get, the more you start to realize that you can't win an argument in a relationship. You can't win a fight with your woman. Because if you lose, you lose. And if you win, you lose.
Trevor NoahRead
I was born in South Africa during apartheid, a system of laws that made it illegal for people to mix in South Africa. And this was obviously awkward because I grew up in a mixed family. My mother's a black woman, South African Xhosa woman... and my father's Swiss, from Switzerland.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects on the challenges of growing up in a mixed-race family during apartheid in South Africa.
Trevor Noah's reflection on his upbringing highlights the contradictions and social injustices of apartheid, a time when racial segregation was enforced by law in South Africa. Growing up in a mixed-race family, Noah experienced the awkwardness of a society that dictated who could associate with whom, revealing the deep divisions and complexities of identity and belonging amidst systemic oppression.
Themes
ApartheidIdentityRaceFamilySouth AfricaInjustice
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about racial equality, one might quote Noah to emphasize personal experiences with systemic injustice.
More from Trevor Noah
All quotes →My ideal setting is I walk from the streets, backstage, and straight onto the stage. Two minutes, and I am on the stage. That way, in my head I have gone from my world and then into a social setting with my friends.
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I'm literally driving in the middle of the night, and my phone rings, and my manager says, 'How would you like to be the host of the Daily Show?' I get out the car, and I didn't have legs. You know in those movies where there's an explosion? But instead of the sound of the explosion, you hear the silence. That's literally what happened.
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I live in South Africa. I'm proud to live there. I've always said I want to be a comedian from South Africa in the world. I will stay in places for a bit here and there and pop into New York for a while, maybe stay in London for a year, but my home will always be South Africa. I enjoy it too much.
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You have two choices, two paths to take as a comedian. You can tackle the difficult subjects and be harsh about it, be brash, be abrasive. But adding hatred to racism is not going to help everybody. So I like to have fun around it.
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I want my audience to be my friends - that is when they will get the best comedy. If they see me as a performer, they won't get the best show.
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