Hey everyone, I finished reading Pedagogy of the Oppressed by Paulo Freire and was wondering if you had read it as well and what you thought about it.
I thought it was really good, it struck me as being very well thought out and as coming from an informed place. Paulo's comparison between banking method of teaching vs. a dialog based approach was very interesting to me. I also liked how he presents this as crucial to revolutionary thinking and how it relates to revolutionary movements overall.
I think anybody who feels like they want to begin conversations with other people on leftist topics would do well to read this book. I think it's good for people who are struggling to impress upon their peers the importance of revolutionary thought in their analysis of the world as it goes into some pitfalls that can effect this.
If you've read it, share with me your impression! Or if you haven't yet, consider putting it on your reading list!
I find it so hard to finish books these days - congratulations! Good work! This one is on my list to read too.
Thanks for the congrats! I would encourage you to give it a try! I do get it though, I was only just able to start reading books again myself.
I'm glad you liked it! I gotta say I think I learned a lot from it too. It definitely helped me understand even in a small part what a revolution would look like and how to talk to people about it. The explanation about the "internalized oppressor" really helped me understand some behavior I'd seen in others that I didnt grasp previously.
I think it also made me less lib haha, all the more reason to read more books I guess.
Its on my To Read list as an expecting parent, want to request my partner to read it too for some of the reasons you mentioned.
I did see in the "overrated books" thread the day some people saying it was a bit overlong or repetitive?
I can definitely see where the criticism comes from. I will say it's shorter in length and the author does only have a handful of points to get.
I think the book was written to be a bit repetitive on purpose to drive home it's points. The author will state something, give some examples, context, or explain a bit more, and then says the point again as a way to wrap it all up.
I didn't mind it, but I can see how when reading it some would want him to move on to the next point. It can feel like a time waste if you already understand the concept and he's just writing on and on about the topic and bringing up the same point. Again, it is short book though, so it's at least not a huge pain.
Also, congrats on the new family member!
It took a few years but reading this book directly resulted in my abandonment of liberalism. Love it