Tahar Ben Jelloun quotes - page 2

We must have our say, not through violence, aggression or fear. We must speak out calmly and forcefully. We shall only be able to enter the new world era if we agree to engage in dialogue with the other side. (Tahar Ben Jelloun)
Poetry is not only a set of words which are chosen to relate to each other; it is something which goes much further than that to provide a glimpse of our vision of the world. View quote
Tahar Ben Jelloun
At 21, I discovered repression and injustice. The army would shoot students with real bullets. View quote
Tahar Ben Jelloun
New ideas should confront old ideas. We must refer to the example of Europe. People have fought to make Europe what it is today. Freedom is not something that is served up on a plate. View quote
Tahar Ben Jelloun
I belong to a specific category of writers, those who speak and write in a language different from that of their parents. View quote
Tahar Ben Jelloun
I do not use the language of my people. I can take liberties with certain themes which the Arabic language would not allow me to take. View quote
Tahar Ben Jelloun
Poetry is a form of mathematics, a highly rigorous relationship with words. View quote
Tahar Ben Jelloun
We do not have many intellectuals who can speak out for us internationally. We have no writers who are recognized, respected and loved outside the Arab world. View quote
Tahar Ben Jelloun
A modern civilization is only possible when it is accepted that singular beings exist and express themselves freely. View quote
Tahar Ben Jelloun
An individual voice can be heard in a choir that otherwise sings in unison. This is something that is not excused. View quote
Tahar Ben Jelloun
To lead a country, you must periodically hold a national consultation in which people representing different programmes can make a bid for power. (Tahar Ben Jelloun)
People must insist on the right to say no, to be alone, to stand out from the herd. Creative artists can say all this in their own way and in their own field, by hard, rigorous work. View quote
Tahar Ben Jelloun
It is impossible to disregard such an important medium as television. We should know how to use it, learn to work in it and express new values in it. View quote
Tahar Ben Jelloun
We must stop posing as victims of the West and behaving negatively towards the West. We must participate with the West on an equal footing in the reconstruction of the world. View quote
Tahar Ben Jelloun
I have written about the dispossessed, immigrants, the condition of women who do not enjoy the same legal rights as men, the Palestinians who are deprived of their land and condemned to exile. View quote
Tahar Ben Jelloun
I write about wounds, the eternal treasons of life. It's not very funny, but it's sincere. My commitment is to sincerity. View quote
Tahar Ben Jelloun
I liked Sartre's views but not his writing. View quote
Tahar Ben Jelloun
I'd thought sexuality was instinctive or natural, but it's profoundly linked to inner security and cultural context. View quote
Tahar Ben Jelloun
In the '70s I was in exile; every time I went back I wondered if they'd take my passport away. View quote
Tahar Ben Jelloun
The world does not look to us in the Arab world out of a healthy desire for knowledge. View quote
Tahar Ben Jelloun
The intellectual, the man of thought, doubt and analysis, should give the best of himself. (Tahar Ben Jelloun)
There is a gulf between the Arab peoples and Arab intellectuals. View quote
Tahar Ben Jelloun
There are very few great poets in the world. View quote
Tahar Ben Jelloun

Tahar Ben Jelloun

Tahar Ben Jelloun - Image
Photo: Photo Claude TRUONG-NGOC, CC BY-SA 3.0
Occupation: French Poet
Born: December 1, 1944
Quotes count: 48