Quotes by
Simone De Beauvoir |
1908-1986 , French writer
Member of the fellowship of intellectuals and philosopher-writers who have given a literary transcription to the themes of Existentialism. She is known primarily for her treatise Le Deuxième Sexe (1949 – The Second Sex), a scholarly and passionate plea for the abolition of the myth of the “eternal feminine.” This seminal work became a classic of feminist literature.
She was also known for her open, lifelong relationship with French philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre.
| 28 quotes | 2,356 visits |
Quotations
| • | To “catch” a husband is an art; to “hold” him is a job. 14 |
| • | Self-knowledge is not knowledge but a story one tells about oneself. 9 |
| • | One is not born, but rather becomes, a woman. 7 |
| • | It is old age, rather than death, that is the opposite of life. 7 |
| • | Some days, God seems to be so distant that I think He is absent. 3 |
| • | Self-knowledge is no guarantee of happiness, but it is on the side of happiness and can supply the courage to fight for it. |
| • | What is an adult? A child blown up by age. |
| • | Sex pleasure in woman is a kind of magic spell; it demands complete abandon; if words or movements oppose the magic of caresses, the spell is broken. |
| • | From primitive times to our own, intercourse has always been considered a "service" for which the male thanks the woman by giving her presents or assuring her maintenance; but to serve is to give oneself a master. |
| • | Since it is the Other within us who is old, it is natural that the revelation of our age should come to us from outside — from others. We do not accept it willingly. |
| • | I am incapable of conceiving infinity, and yet I do not accept finity. I want this adventure that is the context of my life to go on without end. |
| • | One’s life has value so long as one attributes value to the life of others, by means of love, friendship, indignation, compassion. |
| • | To lose confidence in one’s body means to lose self-confidence. |
| • | No one is more arrogant toward women, more aggressive or scornful, than the man who is anxious about his manhood. |
| • | If you live long enough, you'll see that every victory turns into a defeat. |
| • | Be loved, be admired, be necessary; be somebody. |
| • | There is something in the New York air that makes sleep useless. |
| • | To abstain from politics is in itself a political attitude. |
| • | A day in which I don't write leaves a taste of ashes. |
| • | One is not born a genius, one becomes a genius; and the feminine situation has up to the present rendered this becoming practically impossible. |
| • | People seem to think that if you keep your head empty you automatically fill your balls. |
| • | It is so tiring to hate someone you love. |
| • | Oppression tries to defend itself by its utility. |
| • | The body is the instrument of our hold on the world. |
| • | That the child is the supreme aim of woman is a statement having precisely the value of an advertising slogan. |
| • | You said something very true the other day: that for us, nudity begins with the face. |
| • | The whole world was nothing but an exile with no hope of a return. |
| • | Legislators, priests, philosophers, writers, and scientists have striven to show that the subordinate position of woman is favored in heaven and advantageous on earth. |
