Pedagogy of the Oppressed
By Jessica Phoenix Sylvia
Pedagogy of the Oppressed is a ground breaking literary work that explores the concept of critical thinking with the reader. This is Freier’s most significant work, which is quite a statement since he is one of the most influential educators of the 20th century. His central idea of conscientizacao is a foundation on which many community organizers and revolutionaries base their ideas today. If you are not afraid of your own freedom, this is a must read! The one book oppressors do not want you to have..
Conscientizacao may be understood as the expanding of one’s consciousness as it relates to understanding the social, political, and economic conditions and contradictions that one finds themselves enveloped in and thus oppressed. Freire challenges the reader to fearlessly enter into the historical process to understand the world and how one finds themselves in its current condition, unveiling truths and demystifying the world. Paulo Friere claims that the collective struggle for human liberation is the people’s ontological vocation, or calling. The idea is that one must demand to be fully human by accepting responsibility for one’s own education and struggle to gain power and understanding of their own life and how it fits in to the world. This happens not only through ideas and words, but through action and revolutionary praxis!
Praxis is a term that refers to the source of knowledge and creation, the reflection and action that truly transforms reality. Meaning, not only subjectively speaking, or with words and verbalism, but objectively speaking, about that action! Both talking and walking in dialectical unity. This is the essence of transformative justice as I understand it.
Paulo Freire is one of the most influential educators of the 20th century, and perhaps the most important. Freire draws from philosophical concepts going back to Hegel, who influenced Marx and many others. Jean Paul Sartre is also a major influence. And most importantly, Paulo Freire builds directly on the shoulders of Frantz Fanon, with an answer to Wretched of the Earth.
Paulo Freire unveils the oppressive nature of “banking education”, or simply filling a student with facts and killing their creativity. He advocates for problem posing education and cointentional outcomes. If you ever felt that schooling was boring because teachers wanted to fill you with facts instead of stimulate your thinking, you must read this book! Problem posing education asks people to learn together and not for students to simply receive information from a teacher. By posing a problem as a question, one stimulates another to think creatively. Cointentional outcomes happen when subjects learn together and come to a shared synthesis. It is a humanizing approach to education.
While Pedagogy of the Oppressed has been criticized for gendered language and for focusing mainly on matters of class, the book encourages one to dismantle all oppression. Freire thought heavily about matters of class when writing this book and the language seems to neglect the focus of race. However, Freire’s approach to education encourages a liberatory theory and demands action in dialectical unity which can and should be applied to any and all power imbalances.
If you have ever felt oppressed or care for those who are oppressed, this book is a must read! Pedagogy of the Oppressed challenges a reader to think critically about the world around them and for the reader to expand their consciousness. The one book oppressors are afraid you will read. If you are incarcerated, you have to read this book!
If you like the philosophical concepts in this book, I suggest reading Jean Paul Sartre, Frantz Fanon, and Friedrich Hegel’s theory of thesis, antithesis, and synthesis paired with the historical process. Che Guavera claims that every revolutionary is motivated by great feelings of love. Pedagogy of the Oppressed is a perfect book for those to which Che Guevera refers.
Jessica Phoenix Sylvia is a formerly incarcerated transwomen. She is an independent journalist and works as a consultant for Haymarket Books. Follow her on Instagram at @jessicaphoenixsylvia.