Quotes from Chinua Achebe

Democracy is not something you put away for ten years, and then in the 11th year you wake up and start practicing again. We have to begin to learn to rule ourselves again.

Once you allow yourself to identify with the people in a story, then you might begin to see yourself in that story even if on the surface it's far removed from your situation.

A man who does not lick his lips, can he blame the harmattan for drying them?

When a man is at peace with his gods and ancestors, his harvest will be good or bad according to the strength of his arm.

Men have learned to shoot without missing their mark and I have learned to fly without perching on a twig.

The language of young men is pull down and destroy; but an old man speaks of conciliation.

The man that brings ant-infested faggots into his hut should not grumble when lizards begin to pay him a visit.

A man to whom you do a favor will not understand if you say nothing, make no noise, just walk away. You may cause more trouble by refusing a bribe than by accepting it.

Wisdom is like a goatskin bag; every man carries his own.

When a new saying gets to the land of empty men, they lose their heads over it.

Become familiar with your home, but know also about your neighbors. The young man who never went anywhere thinks his mother is the greatest cook.

In dealing with a man who thinks you are a fool, it is good sometimes to remind him that you know what he knows but have chosen to appear foolish for the sake of peace.

As long as one people sit on another and are deaf to their cry, so long will understanding and peace elude all of us.

A man who pays respect to the great paves the way for his own greatness

When Rimbaud became a slave trader, he stopped writing poetry.

The emperor would prefer the poet to keep away from politics, the emperor's domain, so that he can manage things the way he likes.

There is a moral obligation, I think, not to ally oneself with power against the powerless.

...Nothing puzzles God

There is that great proverb — that until the lions have their own historians, the history of the hunt will always glorify the hunter.

We cannot trample upon the humanity of others without devaluing our own.

Serious and good art has always existed to help, to serve, humanity. Not to indict.

Art should be on the side of humanity.

This is why I find racism impossible, because this is against humanity.

Privilege, you see, is one of the great adversaries of the imagination; it spreads a thick layer of adipose tissue over our sensitivity.