--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I sort of feel like that's the most…" description: "\"I sort of feel like that's the most revolutionary thing we can do with our narrative for me as Black people is to show that we are just like you.\" — Vi..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/92a/viola-davis-1174_black_i-sort-of-feel-like-that-s-the-most-revo_1181110.png" --- # I sort of feel like that's the most revolutionary thing we… ![“I sort of feel like that's the most revolutionary thing we can do with our narrative for me as Black people is to show that we are just like you.” quote by Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/92a/viola-davis-1174_black_i-sort-of-feel-like-that-s-the-most-revo_1181110.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/92a/viola-davis-1174_black_i-sort-of-feel-like-that-s-the-most-revo_1181110.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/92a/viola-davis-1174_black_i-sort-of-feel-like-that-s-the-most-revo_1181110.png) > “I sort of feel like that's the most revolutionary thing we can do with our narrative for me as Black people is to show that we are just like you.” [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Narratives should show Black people as ordinary, like anyone else. **In simple terms:** Show Black people as ordinary. Key Takeaway Humanize Black experiences. Themes representation identity media narrative Mood empowering thoughtful Type social political When to use this quote - film casting - storytelling workshops - media analysis - school curricula Key Concepts sociology cultural studies Questions to Reflect On - How can narratives balance normalcy and specificity? - What impact does representation have on society? A Different Perspective Risk of erasing unique cultural experiences. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Black people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black-people/) [Narrative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/narrative/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Revolutionary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/revolutionary/) ## Related quotes > [People seem to think if they dress like a revolutionary they don't actually have to behave like one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/banksy/people-seem-to-think-if-they-dress-like-a-revolutionary-they-don-t/) [Banksy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/banksy/) > [Is it possible that my people live in such awful conditions? I tell you, Mr Wheatley, that if I had to live in conditions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/is-it-possible-that-my-people-live-in-such-awful-conditions-i-tell/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I think what happened with 9/11 is that people sort of felt that it came from nowhere. Whereas I think now we understand the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-blair/i-think-what-happened-with-9-11-is-that-people-sort-of-felt-that-it/) [Tony Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-blair/) > [“The most revolutionary thing you can do is to be yourself, to speak your truth, to open your arms to life including the pain.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-mae-brown/the-most-revolutionary-thing-you-can-do-is-to-be-yourself-to-speak/) [Rita Mae Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-mae-brown/) > [I think there's very little interesting in art that is not transgressive in some way. And I don't think that's a very revolutionary thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-johannsson/i-think-there-s-very-little-interesting-in-art-that-is-not/) [Johann Johannsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-johannsson/) > [So Rita and I decided that the most subversive, revolutionary thing I could do was to show up for my life and not be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/so-rita-and-i-decided-that-the-most-subversive-revolutionary-thing-i/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [The most revolutionary thing you can do is get to know your neighbors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-hess/the-most-revolutionary-thing-you-can-do-is-get-to-know-your-neighbors/) [Karl Hess](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-hess/) > [The single most revolutionary thing you can do is recognize that you are enough.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-andres-gomez/the-single-most-revolutionary-thing-you-can-do-is-recognize-that-you/) Carlos Andres Gomez > [I'm becoming more and more apolitical - I think the most revolutionary thing you can do is just live your life and have a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meshell-ndegeocello/i-m-becoming-more-and-more-apolitical-i-think-the-most-revolutionary/) [Meshell Ndegeocello](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meshell-ndegeocello/) > [The most revolutionary thing one can do is always to proclaim loudly what is happening.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosa-luxemburg/the-most-revolutionary-thing-one-can-do-is-always-to-proclaim-loudly/) [Rosa Luxemburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosa-luxemburg/) > [I think there is this narrative that if you are a black woman, and you are strong, and you are educated, it's like, 'Good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yvonne-orji/i-think-there-is-this-narrative-that-if-you-are-a-black-woman-and-you/) [Yvonne Orji](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yvonne-orji/) > [I just thought someone has to figure out how to break through that barrier and create a narrative for a black super hero story…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-james-marshall/i-just-thought-someone-has-to-figure-out-how-to-break-through-that/) [Kerry James Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-james-marshall/) > [Seriously, I feel more like a revolutionary because the final goal is not only to download all the articles and books and give open…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandra-elbakyan/seriously-i-feel-more-like-a-revolutionary-because-the-final-goal-is/) [Alexandra Elbakyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandra-elbakyan/) > [I'd like to be a revolutionary leader, part of the team that brings freedom to the people of the Earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bez/i-d-like-to-be-a-revolutionary-leader-part-of-the-team-that-brings/) [Bez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bez/) > [I think democracy is the most revolutionary thing in the world….because if you have power you use it to meet the needs of you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-benn/i-think-democracy-is-the-most-revolutionary-thing-in-the-world/) [Tony Benn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-benn/) ## More by Viola Davis > [I look back at pictures of myself and I remember thinking, "I was so fat when I was growing up. I was 165 pounds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-look-back-at-pictures-of-myself-and-i-remember-thinking-i-was-so/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [I am not a glam woman - this definitely is a mask I put on for the public.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-am-not-a-glam-woman-this-definitely-is-a-mask-i-put-on-for-the/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [I was bullied at school. The black girl in Central Falls, Rhode Island, in 1973. There'd be 8 or 10 boys; I would count…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-was-bullied-at-school-the-black-girl-in-central-falls-rhode-island/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [That's why there's so much bad acting out there, because you could see actors watching themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/that-s-why-there-s-so-much-bad-acting-out-there-because-you-could-see/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [I want my work to reflect my level of gifts and talent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-want-my-work-to-reflect-my-level-of-gifts-and-talent/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [I don’t want anyone putting any limits on me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-don-t-want-anyone-putting-any-limits-on-me/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [ I think that's why August \[Wilson\] named her Rose \[in "Fences"\]; I really do. She's a rose in her sweetness and her kindness and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-think-that-s-why-august-wilson-named-her-rose-in-fences-i-really-do/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [When you're working as an actor, you don't think that when you get out of school, it's going to be so hard to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/when-you-re-working-as-an-actor-you-don-t-think-that-when-you-get-out/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [I suffered from low self-esteem for much of my life. And now to feel like maybe something that I'm projecting or saying could mean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-suffered-from-low-self-esteem-for-much-of-my-life-and-now-to-feel/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [I tell my daughter every morning, 'Now, what are the two most important parts of you?' And she says, 'My head and my heart.'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-tell-my-daughter-every-morning-now-what-are-the-two-most-important/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [I started a production company out of necessity, the need for great narratives for actors of color.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-started-a-production-company-out-of-necessity-the-need-for-great/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [That's always the biggest surprise when people meet me: how buoyant I am and how fun and light I am.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/that-s-always-the-biggest-surprise-when-people-meet-me-how-buoyant-i/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [When you're working as an actor, you don't think that when you get out of school, it's going to be so hard to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/when-you-re-working-as-an-actor-you-don-t-think-that-when-you-get-out-2/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [ It was hard, that confrontation scene \[in "Fences"\], that was a hard one. I felt like it was relentless, I never felt like I… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/it-was-hard-that-confrontation-scene-in-fences-that-was-a-hard-one-i/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [I am addicted to any facial product that's anti-aging.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-am-addicted-to-any-facial-product-that-s-anti-aging/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) [Explore all 279 Viola Davis quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) ## More Black quotes > [I wanted to write about voodoo tradition that I feel has been very important to survival of black people here: people of the African…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesmyn-ward/i-wanted-to-write-about-voodoo-tradition-that-i-feel-has-been-very/) [Jesmyn Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesmyn-ward/) > [When you go to a club it's not about being black or white or heavy or thick. I'm shaking my ass because I want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miley-cyrus/when-you-go-to-a-club-it-s-not-about-being-black-or-white-or-heavy-or/) [Miley Cyrus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miley-cyrus/) > [The vision of the left, full of envy and resentment, takes its worst toll on those at the bottom - whether black or white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/the-vision-of-the-left-full-of-envy-and-resentment-takes-its-worst/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/) [Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/) > [The term "black metal" has become a lot looser, or can include a larger range of sounds and extra-musical aesthetics, not just Satan and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-marston/the-term-black-metal-has-become-a-lot-looser-or-can-include-a-larger/) [Colin Marston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-marston/) > [How can you be more subject; black woman in a white man's world?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-duffy/how-can-you-be-more-subject-black-woman-in-a-white-man-s-world/) [Maureen Duffy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-duffy/) > [We have to build our own power. We have to win every single political office we can, where we have a majority of black…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fannie-lou-hamer/we-have-to-build-our-own-power-we-have-to-win-every-single-political/) [Fannie Lou Hamer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fannie-lou-hamer/) > [There is only one party in the United States, the Property Party...and it has two right wings: Republican and Democrat. Republicans are a bit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/there-is-only-one-party-in-the-united-states-the-property-party-and/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [Black music has always known, and not been afraid to acknowledge just how high the stakes of Black thought are. To summarize the final…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-b-wilderson-iii/black-music-has-always-known-and-not-been-afraid-to-acknowledge-just/) Frank B. Wilderson III > [I know how hard it is to be a woman, especially a black woman.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-tyson/i-know-how-hard-it-is-to-be-a-woman-especially-a-black-woman/) [Mike Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-tyson/) > [If soot stains your tunic, dye it black. This is vengeance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-scott-bakker/if-soot-stains-your-tunic-dye-it-black-this-is-vengeance/) [R. Scott Bakker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-scott-bakker/) > [Hollywood is so fixated on keeping it that way because it's generating the buzz, but that representation isn't right. I definitely feel like it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-boyega/hollywood-is-so-fixated-on-keeping-it-that-way-because-it-s/) [John Boyega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-boyega/) > [Nowadays most people wear black most of the time anyway: go to a literary party and one would imagine everyone there was in perpetual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-weldon/nowadays-most-people-wear-black-most-of-the-time-anyway-go-to-a/) [Fay Weldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-weldon/) > [There ain't no such thing as black Muslims. That's how they tried to cut off all my brothers in the rest of the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muhammad-ali/there-ain-t-no-such-thing-as-black-muslims-that-s-how-they-tried-to/) [Muhammad Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muhammad-ali/) > [We do not want to be reminded that it is we, the indigenous people, who are poor and exploited in the land of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-biko/we-do-not-want-to-be-reminded-that-it-is-we-the-indigenous-people-who/) [Steven Biko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-biko/) Browse all 11,655 Black quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I sort of feel like that's the most revolutionary thing we can do with our narrative for me as Black people is to show that we are just like you.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Viola Davis" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-sort-of-feel-like-that-s-the-most-revolutionary-thing-we-can-do/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Black" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-sort-of-feel-like-that-s-the-most-revolutionary-thing-we-can-do/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/92a/viola-davis-1174_black_i-sort-of-feel-like-that-s-the-most-revo_1181110.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/92a/viola-davis-1174_black_i-sort-of-feel-like-that-s-the-most-revo_1181110.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/92a/viola-davis-1174_black_i-sort-of-feel-like-that-s-the-most-revo_1181110.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I sort of feel like that's the most revolutionary thing we can do with our narrative for me as Black people…” — Viola Davis", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Viola Davis", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I sort of feel like that's...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-sort-of-feel-like-that-s-the-most-revolutionary-thing-we-can-do/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-sort-of-feel-like-that-s-the-most-revolutionary-thing-we-can-do/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```