Apparent docility is learned fatalism from an oppressive situation, not national character

Evidence

When superficially analyzed, this fatalism is sometimes interpreted as a docility that is a trait of national character. Fatalism in the guise of docility is the fruit of an historical and sociological situation, not an essential characteristic of a people’s behavior. It almost always is related to the power of destiny or fate or fortune—inevitable forces—or to a distorted view of God. Under the sway of magic and myth, the oppressed (especially the peasants, who are almost submerged in nature) see their suffering, the fruit of exploitation, as the will of God—as if God were the creator of this “organized disorder.” — Paulo Freire, Pedagogy of the Oppressed, 149

Categorization

• XREF: Challenges a common ‘culture of poverty’ framing — a counter to readings of the oppressed as essentially passive, which the reader may meet in redesign discussions.