What have we achieved since the end of the Second World War? We have allowed petty, bourgeois regimes in which everything is average, mediocre.

Quote by Tahar Ben Jelloun

Topics: Tahar Ben Jelloun Quotes

Poetry is a form of mathematics, a highly rigorous relationship with words.

Poetry is a form of mathematics, a highly rigorous relationship with words.

In the Arab world, there is no link between the cultural habits of peoples and...

In the Arab world, there is no link between the cultural habits of peoples and...

My hope is that countries like Morocco will have investment to create work, so people...

My hope is that countries like Morocco will have investment to create work, so people...

We have no Arab intellectuals of international stature because we live in a state of...

We have no Arab intellectuals of international stature because we live in a state of...

It is through accepting other people in our own countries that we shall come to...

It is through accepting other people in our own countries that we shall come to...

We must have our say, not through violence, aggression or fear. We must speak out...

We must have our say, not through violence, aggression or fear. We must speak out...

I have written about the dispossessed, immigrants, the condition of women who do not enjoy...

I have written about the dispossessed, immigrants, the condition of women who do not enjoy...

The mistake we make is to attribute to religions the errors and fanaticism of human...

The mistake we make is to attribute to religions the errors and fanaticism of human...

For me, poetry is a situation - a state of being, a way of facing...

For me, poetry is a situation - a state of being, a way of facing...

I liked Sartre's views but not his writing.

I liked Sartre's views but not his writing.

There is a gulf between the Arab peoples and Arab intellectuals.

There is a gulf between the Arab peoples and Arab intellectuals.

People must insist on the right to say no, to be alone, to stand out...

People must insist on the right to say no, to be alone, to stand out...

I read a poem every night, as others read a prayer.

I read a poem every night, as others read a prayer.

Real friendship, like real poetry, is extremely rare - and precious as a pearl.

Real friendship, like real poetry, is extremely rare - and precious as a pearl.

I am a guest of the French language. My poems in French are born of...

I am a guest of the French language. My poems in French are born of...

This universe can very well be expressed in words and syllables which are not those...

This universe can very well be expressed in words and syllables which are not those...

We must stop posing as victims of the West and behaving negatively towards the West....

We must stop posing as victims of the West and behaving negatively towards the West....

I am a Moroccan writer of French expression.

I am a Moroccan writer of French expression.

The intellectual, the man of thought, doubt and analysis, should give the best of himself.

The intellectual, the man of thought, doubt and analysis, should give the best of himself.

The power of the word in Morocco belonged to men and to the authorities. No...

The power of the word in Morocco belonged to men and to the authorities. No...