Freire wrote Pedagogy of the Oppressed while in political exile to advocate for critical pedagogy as a means of fighting oppression. He believed that education should empower the oppressed through dialogue, problem-posing, and conscientization rather than treating students as empty vessels to be filled, or "banking" education. Freire focused on Latin American peasants and their ability to make history through participatory action. The book introduces concepts like limit-situations, generative themes, and culture circles as tools for communities to transform their social realities through education.