--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Being the first black Nobel laureate, and…" description: "\"Being the first black Nobel laureate, and the first African, the African world considered me personal property. I lost the remaining shreds of my anony..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/315/wole-soyinka-1587_anonymity_being-the-first-black-nobel-laureate-and_1511307.jpg" --- # Being the first black Nobel laureate, and the first… ![“Being the first black Nobel laureate, and the first African, the African world considered me personal property. I lost the remaining shreds of my anonymity, even to walk a few yards in London, Paris or Frankfurt without being stopped.” quote by Wole Soyinka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/315/wole-soyinka-1587_anonymity_being-the-first-black-nobel-laureate-and_1511307.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/315/wole-soyinka-1587_anonymity_being-the-first-black-nobel-laureate-and_1511307.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/315/wole-soyinka-1587_anonymity_being-the-first-black-nobel-laureate-and_1511307.jpg) > “Being the first black Nobel laureate, and the first African, the African world considered me personal property. I lost the remaining shreds of my anonymity, even to walk a few yards in London, Paris or Frankfurt without being stopped.” [Wole Soyinka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wole-soyinka/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Being a pioneering Black Nobel laureate turned him into a public symbol, erasing personal anonymity even in ordinary settings. **In simple terms:** Fame stripped his privacy. Key Takeaway Recognize the cost of public recognition. Themes celebrity identity racial representation Mood introspective proud Type cultural personal When to use this quote - academic conferences - media appearances - travel in public spaces Key Concepts symbolism public scrutiny Questions to Reflect On - How does fame affect personal freedom? - What responsibilities come with being a cultural icon? A Different Perspective Visibility can empower but also expose to unwanted attention. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Anonymity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anonymity/) [Frankfurt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/frankfurt/) [London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/london/) [Nobel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nobel/) [Paris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/paris/) [Property](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/property/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [We have awakened. We will not sleep anymore. 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I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wole-soyinka/of-course-i-ve-enjoyed-having-the-nobel-prize-the-prestige-that-goes/) [Wole Soyinka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wole-soyinka/) > [When an Occupy demo in the centre of Frankfurt makes world news, I shall hurry to join in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-farage/when-an-occupy-demo-in-the-centre-of-frankfurt-makes-world-news-i/) [Nigel Farage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-farage/) > [For a small open economy that trades mostly with the euro zone it makes absolute sense to be part of the currency union. Our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalia-grybauskaite/for-a-small-open-economy-that-trades-mostly-with-the-euro-zone-it/) [Dalia Grybauskaite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalia-grybauskaite/) > [Frankfurt, discussing a stuntman: He missed being killed in that shot be literally half an inch.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guillermo-del-toro/frankfurt-discussing-a-stuntman-he-missed-being-killed-in-that-shot/) [Guillermo del Toro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guillermo-del-toro/) > [Just the way in Europe, Paris, Copenhagen, and Stockholm, and Frankfurt, possibly and Berlin, certainly, all had important roles, because of independence. 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Frankfurt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-g-frankfurt/) > [Winning the competition for Frankfurt's Museum of Applied Art in '79 opened the door to a number of projects in Europe, especially as we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-meier/winning-the-competition-for-frankfurt-s-museum-of-applied-art-in-79/) [Richard Meier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-meier/) ## More by Wole Soyinka > [Writers and intellectuals have a duty to humanity. It is to insist that the human entity remains the primary asset in overall development; thus,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wole-soyinka/writers-and-intellectuals-have-a-duty-to-humanity-it-is-to-insist/) [Wole Soyinka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wole-soyinka/) > [When I tried to create a new political party, which I stressed that this is not my party. 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All that remains is a fiefdom, a planet of slaves regimented by aliens from outer-space.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wole-soyinka/under-a-dictatorship-a-nation-ceases-to-exist-all-that-remains-is-a/) [Wole Soyinka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wole-soyinka/) > [The phenomenon of creativity, we know, is closely related to the ability to yoke together separate, and even seemingly incompatible, matrices.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wole-soyinka/the-phenomenon-of-creativity-we-know-is-closely-related-to-the/) [Wole Soyinka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wole-soyinka/) > [One, a mass movement from within, which, as you know, is constantly being put down brutally but which, again, regroups and moves forward as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wole-soyinka/one-a-mass-movement-from-within-which-as-you-know-is-constantly-being/) [Wole Soyinka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wole-soyinka/) > [One has to confront history honestly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wole-soyinka/one-has-to-confront-history-honestly/) [Wole Soyinka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wole-soyinka/) > [We wasted a lot of creative energy in that immediate post colonial era, when there was a struggle between, you know, the Cold War…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wole-soyinka/we-wasted-a-lot-of-creative-energy-in-that-immediate-post-colonial/) [Wole Soyinka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wole-soyinka/) > [I have a kind of magnetic attraction to situations of violence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wole-soyinka/i-have-a-kind-of-magnetic-attraction-to-situations-of-violence/) [Wole Soyinka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wole-soyinka/) > [The Egba kingdom was one of the very last to be ceded to the British protectorate. 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Other times, it just does not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wole-soyinka/the-problem-with-literature-with-writing-is-that-it-works-sometimes/) [Wole Soyinka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wole-soyinka/) [Explore all 225 Wole Soyinka quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wole-soyinka/) ## More African quotes > [We examine and highlight the history of the African descendants in America, and know that each and every one of us has come this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yvette-clarke/we-examine-and-highlight-the-history-of-the-african-descendants-in/) [Yvette Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yvette-clarke/) > [I'm just trying to touch the world and touch the people and just get good material. 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