The behavior of the oppressed is a prescribed behavior, following as it does the guidelines of the oppressor.
Paulo FreireRead
It is not systematic education which somehow molds society, but, on the contrary, society which, according to its particular structure, shapes education in relation to the ends and interests of those who control the power in that society.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Society influences education more than education shapes society.
Paulo Freire highlights the idea that the structure and interests of society dictate the nature of education rather than the reverse. He argues that education cannot be viewed in isolation; it is shaped by the broader social, economic, and political contexts, and is often designed to serve the interests of those in power.
Themes
EducationSocietyPowerStructureControl
In practice
Example use cases
In a school board meeting addressing educational reforms, this quote can emphasize the need to consider societal influences on curriculum decisions.
More from Paulo Freire
All quotes →How can the oppressed, as divided, unauthentic beings, participate in developing the pedagogy of their liberation?
Paulo FreireRead
Critical and liberating dialogue, which presupposes action, must be carried on with the oppressed at whatever the stage of their struggle for liberation. The content of that dialogue can and should vary in accordance with historical conditions and the level at which the oppressed perceive reality.
Paulo FreireRead
This is the sense in which I am obliged to be a listener. To listen to the student's doubts, fears, and incompetencies that are part of the learning process. It is in listening to the student that I learn to speak with him or her.
Paulo FreireRead
This pedagogy makes oppression and its causes objects of reflection by the oppressed, and from that reflection will come their necessary engagement in the struggle for their liberation. And in the struggle this pedagogy will be made and remade
Paulo FreireRead
The oppressors do not perceive their monopoly on having more as a privilege which dehumanizes others and themselves. They cannot see that, in the egoistic pursuit of having as a possessing class, they suffocate in their own possessions and no longer are; they merely have.
Paulo FreireRead
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