Frantz Fanon Quotes
Frantz Fanon was a Martinican-born psychiatrist, philosopher, and revolutionary whose work has been foundational for postcolonial theory. Trained in France and posted as a psychiatrist in colonial Algeria, he came to support the Algerian struggle for independence and resigned to write openly against the colonial order. The quotes below are attributed to Frantz Fanon, organized by topic.
Frantz Fanon on Freedom
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Attributed to Frantz Fanon:
“I am not a prisoner of history. I should not seek there for the meaning of my destiny.”
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Attributed to Frantz Fanon:
“The colonized man finds his freedom in and through violence.”
Frantz Fanon on Knowledge
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Attributed to Frantz Fanon:
“To speak a language is to take on a world, a culture.”
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Attributed to Frantz Fanon:
“What matters now is not to know the world but to change it.”
Frantz Fanon on Mind
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Attributed to Frantz Fanon:
“Sometimes people hold a core belief that is very strong. When they are presented with evidence that works against that belief, the new evidence cannot be accepted.”
Frantz Fanon on Politics
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Attributed to Frantz Fanon:
“Each generation must, out of relative obscurity, discover its mission, fulfill it, or betray it.”
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Attributed to Frantz Fanon:
“Imperialism leaves behind germs of rot which we must clinically detect and remove from our land but from our minds as well.”