Simone de Beauvoir's most inspiring quotes -

Simone de Beauvoir (1908–1986), a trailblazing French philosopher, writer, and feminist, left an indelible mark on modern thought. She emerged as a key figure in existentialism and a pioneer in feminist philosophy. Her groundbreaking work, 'The Second Sex' (1949), challenged societal norms and inspired generations to rethink gender roles. Beyond philosophy, de Beauvoir explored freedom, identity, and human connection. 

Click on for some of her most inspiring quotes, highlighting her timeless wisdom and revolutionary ideas.

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Becoming a woman -

"One is not born, but rather becomes, a woman."

'The Second Sex' (1949)

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Strength through knowledge -

"It is in the knowledge of the genuine conditions of our lives that we must draw our strength to live and our reason for acting."

'The Ethics of Ambiguity' (1947)

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Seizing the moment -

"Change your life today. Don't gamble on the future, act now, without delay."

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Freedom in love -

"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." 

'The Second Sex' (1949) 

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Transparent freedom -

"I wish that every human life might be pure transparent freedom."

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Political neutrality -

"To abstain from politics is in itself a political attitude."

'The Prime of Life' (1960) 

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Shared rivalry -

"Women's mutual understanding comes from the fact that they identify themselves with each other; but for the same reason, each is against the others."

'The Second Sex' (1949)

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The body -

"The body is not a thing, it is a situation: it is our grasp on the world and our sketch of our project."

'The Second Sex' (1949) 

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Consciousness of self -

"Self-consciousness is not knowledge but a story one tells about oneself."

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The profitable individual -

"Society cares for the individual only so far as he is profitable."

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Emancipation beyond men -

"To emancipate woman is to refuse to confine her to the relations she bears to man, not to deny them to her; let her have her independent existence and she will continue nonetheless to exist for him also: mutually recognising each other as subject, each will yet remain for the other an other. The reciprocity of their relations will not do away with the miracles – desire, possession, love, dream, adventure – worked by the division of human beings into two separate categories; and the words that move us – giving, conquering, uniting – will not lose their meaning. On the contrary, when we abolish the slavery of half of humanity, together with the whole system of hypocrisy that it implies, then the 'division' of humanity will reveal its genuine significance and the human couple will find its true form."

'The Second Sex' (1949)

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Male mediocrity -

"The most mediocre of males feels himself a demigod as compared with women."

'The Second Sex' (1949)

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Oppression as war -

"All oppression creates a state of war; this is no exception."

'The Second Sex' (1949) 

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Finite and infinite -

"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."

'The Coming of Age' (1970)

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Power and transformation -

"The point is not for women simply to take power out of men's hands, since that wouldn't change anything about the world. It's a question precisely of destroying that notion of power."

'The Second Sex' (1949)

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Life beyond maintenance -

"Life is occupied in both perpetuating itself and in surpassing itself; if all it does is maintain itself, then living is only not dying, and human existence is indistinguishable from an absurd vegetation; a life justifies itself only if its effort to perpetuate itself is integrated into its surpassing and if this surpassing has no other limits than those which the subject assigns himself."

'The Ethics of Ambiguity' (1947)

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Value in others -

"One's life has value so long as one attributes value to the life of others, by means of love, friendship, and compassion."

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Marriage and weakness -

"The curse which lies upon marriage is that too often the individuals are joined in their weakness rather than in their strength, each asking from the other instead of finding pleasure in giving."

'The Second Sex' (1949)

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Inferiority imposed -

"When an individual is kept in a situation of inferiority, the fact is that he does become inferior."

'The Second Sex' (1949)

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Freedom for all -

"To will oneself free is also to will others free."

'The Ethics of Ambiguity' (1947)

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Double standards -

"Man is defined as a human being and woman as a female—whenever she behaves as a human being she is said to imitate the male."

'The Second Sex' (1949)

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On books -

"When I was a child, when I was an adolescent, books saved me from despair: that convinced me that culture was the highest of values[...]."

'The Woman Destroyed' (1967)

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The parody of age -

"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."

'The Coming of Age' (1970)

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Shared humanity -

"The fact that we are human beings is infinitely more important than all the peculiarities that distinguish human beings from one another."

'The Second Sex' (1949)

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Fragile masculinity -

"No one is more arrogant toward women, more aggressive or scornful, than the man who is anxious about his virility."

'The Second Sex' (1949)

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Allies of oppression -

 "The oppressor would not be so strong if he did not have accomplices among the oppressed."

'The Ethics of Ambiguity' (1947)

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Male arrogance -

"If the feminine issue is so absurd, is because the male's arrogance made it 'a discussion.'"

'The Second Sex' (1949)

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Self-knowledge and happiness -

"Self-knowledge is no guarantee of happiness, but it is on the side of happiness and can supply the courage to fight for it."

'The Second Sex' (1949) 

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Adulthood defined -

"What is an adult? A child blown up by age."

Sources: (The Guardian) (The Independent) (Goodreads) 

See also: When women were granted the right to vote around the world

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