24+ David Henry Hwang Quotes (Creative, Innovative And Diverse)

David Henry Hwang is an American playwright, best known for his Tony Award-winning play M. Butterfly. He is a prolific writer of plays, musicals, and operas, and is the most-produced living American opera librettist. He is also the author of the Tony-nominated play Chinglish and the Obie Award-winning play Yellow Face.

Top 10 David Henry Hwang Quotes

1. To me to write well is to battle stereotypes. To write well is to create three-dimensional characters that seem human.
2. Sometimes I hate you, sometimes I hate myself, but always I miss you
3. I define the American dream as the ability to imagine a way that you want your life to turn out, and have a reasonable hope that you can achieve that.
4. Yellow Face marks my summation of multiculturalism.
5. It's the stories that make my heart beat faster ...those are the ones to write about
6. There's a reason why the form was originally silent
7. I've never quite understood the idea of a "season." Whenever an artistic director says to me, 'I have this slot,' I always start to feel we're parking cars or something.
8. The West believes the East, deep down, wants to be dominated, because a woman can’t think for herself
9. Death with honor is better than life... life with dishonor.
10. Well, there's no guarantee of failure in life like happiness in high school.

David Henry Hwang Short Quotes

• We are all prisoners of our time and place.
• Ive studied Chinese in college, but basically, Im not bilingual.
• Time flies when you’re being stupid.
• I'm happy. Which often looks like crazy.
• Now I see -- we are always most revolted by the things hidden within us.

David Henry Hwang Famous Quotes And Sayings

I knew I was Chinese, but growing up, it never occurred to me that that had any particular implication or that it should differentiate me in any way. I thought it was a minor detail, like having red hair. — David Henry Hwang

I visited a new cultural center in Shanghai in 2005 that was pretty much perfect, except for the really badly translated Chinglish signs: a handicapped restroom that said Deformed Mans Toilet, that kind of thing. — David Henry Hwang

Tonight, I've finally learned to tell fantasy from reality. And, knowing the difference, I choose fantasy. — David Henry Hwang

I felt pretty good growing up. I didnt feel a lot of prejudice or racism. But I do remember, if there was going to be a movie or a television show with Asian characters, I would go out of my way to avoid them, because they portrayed all Asians as either ridiculously good or ridiculously bad; you know, the whole Charlie Chan-Fu Manchu thing. — David Henry Hwang

I now know that to do a worthwhile family history I must interpret the past without falling into either demonizing or unquestioning acceptance. . . . As a playwright, what I object to right now is any form of fundamentalism, whether it's nationalistic, religious or ethnic. . . . I think it is ridiculous - and fundamentalist, by the way - to say that I am not changed by the culture around me. — David Henry Hwang

. . . I felt I was finally in a position to affect not only the artistic content of the American theatre, but also its institutional structures. This has been an important goal of mine, as there have always been a variety of issues - artistic freedom, author's rights, access by minority groups - which have concerned me and even influenced my decision to become a playwright in the first place. — David Henry Hwang

Why, in the Peking Opera, are women's roles played by men?...Because only a man knows how a woman is supposed to act. — David Henry Hwang

This is the ultimate cruelty, isn't it? That I can talk and talk and to anyone listening, it's only air--too rich a diet to be swallowed by a mundane world. — David Henry Hwang

Chinese culture in general is not very religious. Confucianism is more a code of ethics than a religion, and ancestor worship is a way for parents to control you even after theyre dead. — David Henry Hwang

Life Lessons by David Henry Hwang

1. David Henry Hwang's work emphasizes the importance of exploring and understanding different cultures and perspectives.
2. Through his plays, he encourages us to challenge our own preconceived notions and to be more open to diverse ideas and experiences.
3. His work also highlights the need to recognize and celebrate the unique contributions of different ethnicities and cultures in order to create a more inclusive society.