I'm always annoyed about why black people have to bear the brunt of everybody else's contempt. If we are not totally understanding and smiling, suddenly we're demons.

Quote by Toni Morrison

Topics: Toni Morrison Quotes

If there's a book you really want to read but it hasn't been written yet,...

If there's a book you really want to read but it hasn't been written yet,...

We die. That may be the meaning of life. But we do language. That may...

We die. That may be the meaning of life. But we do language. That may...

If you surrendered to the air, you could ride it.

If you surrendered to the air, you could ride it.

Black boys became criminalized. I was in constant dread for their lives, because they were...

Black boys became criminalized. I was in constant dread for their lives, because they were...

For a long time I was convinced that the conflict between Jewish people and black...

For a long time I was convinced that the conflict between Jewish people and black...

The loneliest woman in the world is the woman without a close woman friend.

The loneliest woman in the world is the woman without a close woman friend.

Too much tail. All that jewelry weighs it down. Like vanity. Can't nobody fly with...

Too much tail. All that jewelry weighs it down. Like vanity. Can't nobody fly with...

Everywhere, everywhere, children are the scorned people of the earth.

Everywhere, everywhere, children are the scorned people of the earth.

Beloved, you are my sister, you are my daughter, you are my face; you are...

Beloved, you are my sister, you are my daughter, you are my face; you are...

When there is pain, there are no words. All pain is the same.

When there is pain, there are no words. All pain is the same.

Black literature is taught as sociology, as tolerance, not as a serious, rigorous art form.

Black literature is taught as sociology, as tolerance, not as a serious, rigorous art form.

Everything I've ever done, in the writing world, has been to expand articulation, rather than...

Everything I've ever done, in the writing world, has been to expand articulation, rather than...

I wrote my first novel because I wanted to read it.

I wrote my first novel because I wanted to read it.

Nelson Mandela is, for me, the single statesman in the world. The single statesman, in...

Nelson Mandela is, for me, the single statesman in the world. The single statesman, in...

You marvel at the economy and this choice of words. How many ways can you...

You marvel at the economy and this choice of words. How many ways can you...

Make a difference about something other than yourselves.

Make a difference about something other than yourselves.

I would solve a lot of literary problems just thinking about a character in the...

I would solve a lot of literary problems just thinking about a character in the...

I get angry about things, then go on and work.

I get angry about things, then go on and work.

It's been mentioned or suggested that Paradise will not be well studied, because it's about...

It's been mentioned or suggested that Paradise will not be well studied, because it's about...

I don't think a female running a house is a problem, a broken family. It's...

I don't think a female running a house is a problem, a broken family. It's...