Paulo Freire: The Act of Reading as a Decolonizing Process

Abstract

This papers aims to make a critical interpretation of Paulo Freire literacy proposal and contrast it with the theoretical guidelines of decolonial thought. To achieve this end, the presentation is divided into three central aspects: the first part presents the humanistic characteristics that the act of reading possesses in Freire's pedagogical thought; secondly, it points out the importance of the word, as a means of meeting individuals with themselves and with others, in this process the students discover that the word is part of their reality, of their cultural heritage and, as such, has the power to lead them to liberating dilological processes. Finally, the need to recognize the act of reading as a decolonizing process is pointed out, in the face of Eurocentric patterns and the monolithic logic of Western Modernity. In this sense, it is proposed to guide the act of reading as a process that strengthens the rational capacity of individuals, to lead to an epistemic, ontological and political decolonization.