Morality resides in the painfulness of an indefinite questioning.
Simone de Beauvoir
Moral Dilemma, Indefinite Questioning, Ethical Pain, Reflection, Ambiguity, Morality
Simone de Beauvoir’s Quotes On Topics
Constraints | Intimate Dialogue | Reality Control | Self-Loss | Reflection | Discovery | Exploitation | Evil Integration | Loss Of Sensation | Silent Curiosity | Anxiety | Atheism | Human Place | Life Awareness | Heroine | Unity Vision | Truth Seeking | Self-Acceptance | Philosophical Conflict | Independence | More
More Simone de Beauvoir Quotes
“Old age was growing inside me. It kept catching my eye from the depths of the mirror. I was paralyzed sometimes as I saw it making its way toward me so steadily when nothing inside me was ready for it.” Simone de Beauvoir
Aging Reflection, Mortality Awareness, Inner Resistance, Time Passage, Personal Introspection, Life Change
Simone de Beauvoir Aging Reflection, Mortality Awareness, Inner Resistance, Time Passage, Personal Introspection, Life Change“The means, it is said, will be justified by the end; but it is the means which define it, and if it is contradicted at the moment that it is set up, the whole enterprise sinks into absurdity.” Simone de Beauvoir
Means And Ends, Ethical Reflection, Contradiction Challenge, Philosophical Inquiry, Action Consequences, Value Systems
Simone de Beauvoir Means And Ends, Ethical Reflection, Contradiction Challenge, Philosophical Inquiry, Action Consequences, Value Systems“This privilege, which he alone possesses, of being a sovereign and unique subject amidst a universe of objects, is what he shares with all his fellow-men. In turn an object for others, he is nothing more than an individual in the collectivity on which he depends.” Simone de Beauvoir
Human Condition, Individual Identity, Existential Reflection, Collectivity, Dependence, Privilege
Simone de Beauvoir Human Condition, Individual Identity, Existential Reflection, Collectivity, Dependence, Privilege“Patience is one of those feminine qualities which have their origin in our oppression but should be preserved after our liberation.” Simone de Beauvoir
Patience And Strength, Feminine Qualities, Oppression And Liberation, Gender Struggles, Emotional Resilience, Personal Growth
Simone de Beauvoir Patience And Strength, Feminine Qualities, Oppression And Liberation, Gender Struggles, Emotional Resilience, Personal Growth“People say you have to have faith because believing is irrational. So I end up thinking that the more irrational things seem, the more likely they are to be true.” Simone de Beauvoir
Irrational Belief, Faith Insight, Truth Reflection, Philosophy, Conviction, Faith
Simone de Beauvoir Irrational Belief, Faith Insight, Truth Reflection, Philosophy, Conviction, Faith“I quickly realized that friendships without tomorrows, and the little anguishes of parting, were part of the pleasures of traveling. I resolutely avoided bores, saw only those who amused me. We spent afternoons taking long walks, nights drinking and talking, and then we would leave each other, never to meet again, and there were no regrets. How simple life was. No regrets, no obligations, my acts and gestures counted for nothing, no one asked my advice, and I knew no other rule but my whims.” Simone de Beauvoir
Travel Freedom, No Regrets, Carefree Life, Friendship Dynamics, Simple Pleasures, Emotional Detachment
Simone de Beauvoir Travel Freedom, No Regrets, Carefree Life, Friendship Dynamics, Simple Pleasures, Emotional Detachment“Retirement may be looked upon either as a prolonged holiday or as a rejection, a being thrown on to the scrap-heap.” Simone de Beauvoir
Retirement Views, Purpose Post-Career, Ageing Perspectives, Work-Life, Transition, Society
Simone de Beauvoir Retirement Views, Purpose Post-Career, Ageing Perspectives, Work-Life, Transition, Society“The man most sympathetic to women never knows her concrete situation fully. So there is no good reason to believe men when they try to defend privileges whose scope they cannot even fathom.” Simone de Beauvoir
Concrete Situation, Defended Privileges, Sympathy, Women, Men, Fathom
Simone de Beauvoir Concrete Situation, Defended Privileges, Sympathy, Women, Men, Fathom“I could easily understand why Lambert was bored with this peace which gave us back our lives without giving us back our reasons for living.” Simone de Beauvoir
Life Purpose, Peace Reflection, Existential Boredom, Emotional Disconnect, Philosophical Inquiry, Meaningful Living
Simone de Beauvoir Life Purpose, Peace Reflection, Existential Boredom, Emotional Disconnect, Philosophical Inquiry, Meaningful Living“I know nothing, nothing. I not only have no answer to give, but I haven’t even found a satisfactory way of propounding the questions.” Simone de Beauvoir
Ignorance Admission, Question Reflection, Existential Inquiry, Intellectual Humility, Ignorance, Inquiry
Simone de Beauvoir Ignorance Admission, Question Reflection, Existential Inquiry, Intellectual Humility, Ignorance, Inquiry“Society cares about the individual only in so far as he is profitable. The young know this. Their anxiety as they enter in upon social life matches the anguish of the old as they are excluded from it.” Simone de Beauvoir
Societal Profit, Youth Anxiety, Aging Anguish, Individual Worth, Society, Profit
Simone de Beauvoir Societal Profit, Youth Anxiety, Aging Anguish, Individual Worth, Society, Profit“When women act like women, they are accused of being inferior. When women act like human beings, they are accused of behaving like men.” Simone de Beauvoir
Gender Equality, Stereotypes, Women's Rights, Bias, Misconceptions, Liberation
Simone de Beauvoir Gender Equality, Stereotypes, Women's Rights, Bias, Misconceptions, Liberation“If I were to share Jaques’ existence I would find it hard to hold my own against him, for already I found his nihilism contagious.” Simone de Beauvoir
Nihilism, Existential Dread, Personal Struggles, Shared Existence, Philosophical Conflict, Influence Of Others
Simone de Beauvoir Nihilism, Existential Dread, Personal Struggles, Shared Existence, Philosophical Conflict, Influence Of Others“Woman is determined not by her hormones or by mysterious instincts, but by the manner in which her body and her relation to the world are modified through the action of others than herself.” Simone de Beauvoir
Gender Roles, Social Influence, Feminist Perspective, Identity, Autonomy
Simone de Beauvoir Gender Roles, Social Influence, Feminist Perspective, Identity, Autonomy“There are cases where the slave does not know his servitude and where it is necessary to bring the seed of his liberation to him from the outside: his submission is not enough to justify the tyranny which is imposed upon him.” Simone de Beauvoir
Servitude Awareness, Liberation Seed, Tyranny Critique, Submission, Freedom, Injustice
Simone de Beauvoir Servitude Awareness, Liberation Seed, Tyranny Critique, Submission, Freedom, Injustice“Women – except in certain abstract gatherings such as conferences – do not use “we”; men say “women,” and women adopt this word to refer to themselves; but they do not posit themselves authentically as Subjects.” Simone de Beauvoir
Collective Identity, Gender Pronouns, Authentic Reflection, Group Dynamics, Identity, Collective
Simone de Beauvoir Collective Identity, Gender Pronouns, Authentic Reflection, Group Dynamics, Identity, Collective“The facts of religion were convincing only to those who were already convinced.” Simone de Beauvoir
Religious Conviction, Faith Reflection, Confirmation Bias, Belief System, Religion, Perspective
Simone de Beauvoir Religious Conviction, Faith Reflection, Confirmation Bias, Belief System, Religion, Perspective“By the time humankind reaches the stage of writing its mythology and laws, patriarchy is definitively established: it is males who write the codes.” Simone de Beauvoir
Patriarchal Codes, Mythology And Laws, Gender Bias, Societal Foundations, Patriarchy, Power Structure
Simone de Beauvoir Patriarchal Codes, Mythology And Laws, Gender Bias, Societal Foundations, Patriarchy, Power Structure“To will oneself moral and to will oneself free are one and the same decision.” Simone de Beauvoir
Moral Freedom, Ethical Living, Free Will, Personal Choice, Inner Power, Liberation
Simone de Beauvoir Moral Freedom, Ethical Living, Free Will, Personal Choice, Inner Power, Liberation“It may happen that in a matrilineal system she has a very high position: but – beware – the presence of a woman chief or a queen at the head of a tribe absolutely does not mean that women are sovereign: the reign of Catherine the Great changed nothing in the fate of Russian peasant women; and they lived no less frequently in a state of abjection.” Simone de Beauvoir
Female Leadership, Historical Inequality, Gender Analysis, Sovereignty, Power Dynamics
Simone de Beauvoir Female Leadership, Historical Inequality, Gender Analysis, Sovereignty, Power Dynamics