20 Inspiring feminist quotes about women power and women

20 Inspiring feminist quotes about women power and women

It is the year 2020, and I still know some people, including women, who are not comfortable calling themselves feminists, because some how they identify women power means male bashing. Here are some inspiring quotes about women power from strong women that might change your opinion!

What are your favorite quotes about women power and feminism? Do you have a quote from strong inspiring women? Let me know in the comments! Click To Tweet

Inspiring feminist quotes about women power and women

If you want something said, ask a man; if you want something done, ask a woman.

Margaret Thatcher

Don’t let anyone speak for you, and don’t rely on others to fight for you.

Michelle Obama

The question isn’t who’s going to let me; it’s who is going to stop me.

Ayn Rand
Atwood quotes about women power

It’s not my responsibility to be beautiful. I’m not alive for that purpose. My existence is not about how desirable you find me.

Warsan Shire

And really, how insulting is it that to suggest that the best thing women can do is raise other people to do incredible things? I’m betting some of those women would like to do great things of their own.

Jessica Valenti, Why Have Kids?

A woman is like a tea bag you never know how strong she is until she gets in hot water.

Eleanor Roosevelt

I hate to hear you talk about all women as if they were fine ladies instead of rational creatures. None of us want to be in calm waters all our lives.

Jane Austen, Persuasion
Ayn Rand Quotes about women

I myself have never been able to find out precisely what feminism is: I only know that people call me a feminist whenever I express sentiments that differentiate me from a doormat.

Rebecca West

Men are afraid that women will laugh at them. Women are afraid that men will kill them.

Margaret Atwood

Whatever women do they must do twice as well as men to be thought half as good. Luckily, this is not difficult.

Charlotte Whitton

What is feminism? Simply the belief that women should be as free as men, however nuts, dim, deluded, badly dressed, fat, receding, lazy and smug they might be. Are you a feminist? Of course you are.

Caitlin Moran, How to be a woman.

The history of men’s opposition to women’s emancipation is more interesting perhaps than the story of that emancipation itself.

Virginia Woolf, A Room of One’s Own

No woman can call herself free who does not control her own body.

Margaret Sanger
Margaret Sanger Inspiring feminist quote

My mother told me to be a lady. And for her, that meant be your own person, be independent.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Woman’s degradation is in man’s idea of his sexual rights. Our religion, laws, customs, are all founded on the belief that woman was made for man.

Elizabeth Cady Stanton

Of course I am not worried about intimidating men. The type of man who will be intimidated by me is exactly the type of man I have no interest in.

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Ruth Bader Ginsburg Quotes about women power

Feminism isn’t about making women stronger. Women are already strong, it’s about changing the way the world perceives that strength.

G.D. Anderson

I think being a woman is like being Irish… Everyone says you’re important and nice, but you take second place all the time.

Iris Murdoch

I’m tough, ambitious, and I know exactly what I want. If that makes me a bitch, okay.

Madonna

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20 Inspiring feminist quotes about women power and women

Book review: The Bell Jar

Today let us talk about a book that I have been raving about to everyone I know and their mother in the past few days. And it is a re-read too, which makes it a rarer thing, because most of my reread attempts end up badly for me. I would avoid rereading a loved book if I can help it for the same reason. And we are talking about The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath. 

I would avoid rereading a loved book if I can help. But I took a chance with The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath, and read more to find out how that turned out! #TheBellJar #SylviaPlath #MentalIllness #Suicidal Click To Tweet

About The Bell Jar

The bell jar

Book Name: The Bell Jar

Author: Sylvia Plath

Genre: Fiction – Classics, Literary, autobiography

Characters: Esther Greenwood, Mrs. Greenwood (her mother), Doreen, Jay Cee, Betsy, Constantin, Buddy Willard, Doctor Nolan, Mrs. Willard, Lenny Shepherd

Setting: Boston, Massachusetts, New York CityThe United States of America

Plot summary of The Bell Jar

The Bell Jar is a semi autobiographical account of the author and her struggle with depression and suicide. Set in New York City’s 1950s before the big sexual revolution and the birth control pills, Esther works at a glamorous newspaper that takes her to the happening parties and galas. But she is lost between her worlds while her mind is on the execution of the Rosenbergs and ‘being burned alive’.

When she learns that she failed to receive the scholarship that she had been planning for all along, she falls into a bout of depression. The Bell Jar talks about her perspective as a college educated woman in a sexist world and later her struggle with her existential despair.

Between her stays in different mental asylums and the consequent electro-shock therapies, she spends her time writing a novel and planning her suicide. Can this poignant and bleak tale have a not-so-sad ending? You might be surprised if you read The Bell Jar!

Book review of The Bell Jar

I should start with saying ‘yes this book is depressing’ and you have to be prepared for that before you pick the book. In spite of having read it earlier, I was not ready for it when it hit me. It is not a long book but sure needed a bit of more of time than normally something of this size would have. 

Esther’s disinterested narration felt so close to home that I had to stop more than once. She does not talk about her feelings at all but convincingly transfers her emotions to the reader. 

The Bell Jar is much more than the foreshadowing of the author’s ill fate, it is a social commentary. At some point, her insanity made more sense to me than the current socio-political scenario.

Despite that fifty plus years that have passed since the book first came out, we still are chastising women for talking about their sexuality, and stigmatized about mental health issues. The conundrum of having to choose between career and having a family is somehow still a huge issue for woman of all ages. May be we have not moved ahead at all. 

Things that worked for me

  • I loved the poetical narration that changed pace so often, yet kept me hooked to it.
  • Though the author does not introduce any character or even describe them, by the end of the book I felt like I knew each of them personally and I was trying to match them up with my real life counterparts.
  • If you have been afflicted by suicidal thoughts or depression, or just the patriarchal world, you will totally relate to The Bell Jar. 
  • The book is full of quotes that I loved and kept highlighting until the end.

Things that may not work for you

  • Being a semi-autobiography, it unsurprisingly is not plot oriented. So if you are looking for a fast paced story you might be disappointed.
  • The Bell Jar deals with suicidal attempts, self harm, sexual abuse, depression and ill treatment of mental health patients. If these are your triggers, you SHOULD avoid this one. 

Bottom-line

I loved this book in spite of the melancholic emptiness it left me after I finished reading it. Though I liked The bell jar when I read it the first time, I ended loving it more, understanding it better, and relating to the author deeper during my second visit.

Well, if that is not the mark of a great book I don’t know what is. Just read it.

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Have you read The Bell Jar? Have you read her poems? Do share your recommendations other books that deal with suicide attempts, please. Let us talk.

20 Inspiring feminist quotes about women power and women

Young Jane Young by Gabrielle Zevin: A book review

Y’all know how I successfully completed the A-Z reading challenge of 2018! I know I know, I surprised myself and I am definitely signing up for the next year too. And that is how I heard of the highly rated Young Jane Young by Gabrielle Zevin as I was on the lookout for the letter ‘Y’. 

Have you read Young Jane Young by Gabrielle Zevin or anything else from the author? Let us talk about it in my review Click To Tweet

To be fair I would have been okay with just a decent read because my aim was more to tick that letter off. Did that happen with Young Jane Young by Gabrielle Zevin? Let us see, shall we?

About the book

Young Jane Young by Gabrielle Zevin Cover

Book Name: Young Jane Young

Author:  Gabrielle Zevin

Genre: Fiction – Drama

Characters: Rachel Grossman, Jane Young (Aviva Grossman), Aaron and Embeth Levin, Ruby Young

Setting: Florida, Maine, The USA

Plot

Loosely based on the Bill Clinton/Monica Lewinsky scandal from the yesteryears, Zevin talks about the other side of the story in her book, Young Jane Young.

Taking place in Florid, Aviva Grossman, a new intern has an affair with the handsome Congressman Aaron Levin. When it comes out in the open, the congressman’s life stays impact, despite the negative news and Aviva’s life is turned upside down. But all that is the past.

Now, she has moved states and reinvented herself as Jane Young, an event planner, and lives with her headstrong daughter Ruby. When she is convinced to run for the mayor of her small town, her past catches up.

Ruby realizes her mother is not who she believed to be and takes things up in her own hands. Did that end well? Did the Grossman family have a chance to reconcile? You will have to read Young Jane Young to know more.

My initial thoughts

In Young Jane Young, we read about the present life and the aftermath of the scandal through the eyes of five female involved Rachel Grossman (Aviva’s mother), Jane Young (Aviva’s new life), Embeth Levin (the congressman’s wife), Ruby (Jane’s daughter) and Aviva herself (in a Choose Your Adventure style narration). 

I generally like books that have different POVs. I know they usually are either hit or miss and there is no in between. And Zevin nails this down. 

As much as I understood the actions of the 13 year old Ruby, they still irritated me, especially when she is portrayed as a rational and feminist kinda kid. I didn’t feel related to any of the characters but that, surprisingly didn’t seem a negative in Young Jane Young. 

Apart from the story as much, Young Jane Young brings out the double standard and misogynist society we live in, especially because IT REALLY HAPPENED.

Though I was kinda young and living in a different continent altogether to know all the details, I remember how we joked about the seductress and tore her apart while Clinton’s political life and marriage survived. And we went on to diss about Hillary Clinton about deciding to stay with him. I think this is a powerful feminist story in its own way. 

Things that worked for me

  • The plot is definitely interesting and is worth talking about. I didn’t quite expect Young Jane Young to turn out to be a feminist tale.
  • The writing is fast and engaging. I never felt even a moment’s lag in the pace of the story. 
  • I loved reading different point of views of five strong women. 

Things that didn’t work for me

  • I didn’t relate to any of the characters and the actions of few of these characters really irked me. 
  • It takes a while for the story to pick and for the reader to understand what really happened in the past.
  • Choose Your Adventure style narration for the last part felt too gimmicky for my liking.

Bottom-line

If you are ready to face the misogynistic side of the yesteryear’s scandal, Young Jane Young by Gabrielle Zevin is for you. I liked Gabrielle Zevin’s engaging style of writing and I will definitely be reading more from her. 

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Have you read Young Jane Young by Gabrielle Zevin or anything else from the author? What do you think happened to the real life character? Let us talk.

20 Inspiring feminist quotes about women power and women

Moxie by Jennifer Mathieu: A Book Review

It has been a while since I had a book that got me riled up like THUG did it for me. When I saw Moxie by Jennifer Mathieu, I thought it would be my ticket to reaching it again. Well, to know if it happened or not, you should read my book review of Moxie by Jennifer Mathieu ahead. 

About Moxie

Moxie

Book Name: Moxie

Author: Jennifer Mathieu

Genre: Fiction – YA

Characters: Vivian, Seth, Claudia, Lucy

Setting: The USA

Plot Summary of Moxie

When the boys at Vivian’s school get away with their sexist slogans and actions, Vivian circulates out feminist zine called Moxie anonymously to bring the girls together. Her actions and ideas garner attention and soon the school girls walk out to support one of theirs claims. How Viv and her friends stand up to the toxic environment forms the rest of Moxie.

Book review of Moxie

Moxie talks about topics that are highly relevant today – feminism and rape culture. It highlights the importance of speaking out and the power of collective voice. 

I loved how the shy and obedient Vivian turned to be the voice of the rebellion and protest. The story may have been written for a younger audience but worked for me – to an extent. But then, the story also had its flaws that left me unimpressed. 

Things that worked for me

  • I adored the new and old female friendships that were formed during the story.
  • The messages on feminism and rape culture certainly made me worked up and agitated.

Things that didn’t work for me

  • Some of the characters were so one dimensional that they seemed straight out of a parody.
  • The romance between Seth and Viv was so forced and the book could have easily been romance free.
  • While there were adults involved, why the situation was never brought to their notice?

Bottom-line

If you are looking for a book to help to start a conversation about feminism with your niece or nephew Moxie may be the one for you. I felt it was more of a middle grade book than a Young Adult literature. 

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Moxie

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Have you read Moxie by Jennifer Mathieu? How do you distinguish between Middle grade and YA? Suggest some feminism books please. Let us talk.

20 Inspiring feminist quotes about women power and women

Which Female Literary Character are you?: Quiz

I love it when I relate to the characters of a book I love. And I was super excited to created this quiz, so that you can find out which Female Literary Character you are similar to!

Don’t you feel better when you find some characteristics of yours in another person, even if it just in a book, and that you are not all alone in this world? I do.

Take this quiz to find out who your female book twin is. Which Female Literary Character are you? Let me know your result in the comment section. Click To Tweet
PIn it Pinterest Quiz Female Character
Pin me Pinterest Quiz Female Character

Here is your chance to find out which female literary character from the literary world is your twin is by answering few questions. Let me know who you are.

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Who is your female book twin? Can you related to your twin Female literary Character? Are there any other bookish quizzes that you have tried and liked? Let me know in the comment section.