The revolutionary text opens with a complete dissection of oppression which engages both the structure and the oppression that is rife but unattended. This, according to Freire, stems from the relationship the oppressor and the oppressed share. There is a certain balance and stability in this skewed scheme of power-sharing. Here Freire expounds upon the theory that freedom is threatening to the oppressed whose lethargy and ignorance are fuelled through domination. 
Pedagogy Of The Oppressed finds its inspiration from Marxism and makes his explorative analysis between the oppressed and the oppressor through the same analogies. For Freire, his primary argument is against what he christens the ‘banking’ system of education. He states that education best serves the populace when the receiving end is looked on as a co-creator of knowledge. This is not the case with the traditional albeit ‘banking’ form of education where the incumbent is treated as a vessel only to receive knowledge. He draws parallels between the students to bank accounts only open to deposits in the traditional teaching paradigm.