Defending the truth is not something one does out of a sense of duty or to allay guilt complexes, but is a reward in itself. – Simone de Beauvoir
Society, being codified by man, decrees that woman is inferior; she can do away with this inferiority only by destroying the male’s superiority. – Simone de Beauvoir
Man is defined as a human being and a woman as a female – whenever she behaves as a human being she is said to imitate the male. – Simone de Beauvoir
All the idols made by man, however terrifying they may be, are in point of fact subordinate to him, and that is why he will always have it in his power to destroy them. – Simone de Beauvoir
In the face of an obstacle which is impossible to overcome, stubbornness is stupid. – Simone de Beauvoir
To make oneself an object, to make oneself passive, is a very different thing from being a passive object. – Simone de Beauvoir
Why one man rather than another? It was odd. You find yourself involved with a fellow for life just because he was the one that you met when you were nineteen. – Simone de Beauvoir
This has always been a man’s world, and none of the reasons that have been offered in explanation have seemed adequate. – Simone de Beauvoir
It is old age, rather than death, that is to be contrasted with life. Old age is life’s parody, whereas death transforms life into a destiny: in a way it preserves it by giving it the absolute dimension. Death does away with time. – Simone de Beauvoir
When an individual is kept in a situation of inferiority, the fact is that he does become inferior. – Simone de Beauvoir
No one is more arrogant toward women, more aggressive or scornful, than the man who is anxious about his virility. – Simone de Beauvoir
I tore myself away from the safe comfort of certainties through my love for truth – and truth rewarded me. – Simone de Beauvoir
In itself, homosexuality is as limiting as heterosexuality: the ideal should be to be capable of loving a woman or a man; either, a human being, without feeling fear, restraint, or obligation. – Simone de Beauvoir
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. – Simone de Beauvoir
One’s life has value so long as one attributes value to the life of others, by means of love, friendship, indignation and compassion. – Simone de Beauvoir
