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Women are the only exploited group in history to have been idealized into powerlessness.
Erica Jong
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Interpretation

What this quote means

Women have been both idealized and oppressed throughout history, leading to a perception of powerlessness.

Erica Jong's quote highlights a significant contradiction in societal views of women; while they have often been romanticized and elevated to an ideal, this idolization has paradoxically resulted in their oppression and marginalization. Instead of empowering women, this idealization can enforce a narrative that ultimately strips them of agency and reinforces systemic inequalities.

Themes

WomenPowerExploitationIdealizationHistory

In practice

Example use cases

This quote can be used in a discussion on women's rights and empowerment.

More from Erica Jong

My reaction to porno films is as follows: After the first ten minutes, I want to go home and screw. After the first twenty minutes, I never want to screw again as long as I live.
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I have accepted fear as a part of life - specifically the fear of change... I have gone ahead despite the pounding in the heart that says: turn back.
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No one ever found wisdom without also being a fool. Writers, alas, have to be fools in public, while the rest of the human race can cover its tracks.
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My generation was not only maligned in book reviews and attacked in graduate school but we lived to see our adored and adorable daughters wonder why feminism had become a dirty word.
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Do you want me to tell you something really subversive? Love is everything it's cracked up to be. That's why people are so cynical about it. It really is worth fighting for, being brave for, risking everything for. And the trouble is, if you don't risk anything, you risk even more.
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I believe that women should live for love, for motherhood and for intellect, and I believe we shouldn't have to choose. And I believe that's always been difficult for women, to express themselves intellectually, maternally, and passionately.
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