A review by laleha
Pretty Bitches: On Being Called Crazy, Angry, Bossy, Frumpy, Feisty, and All the Other Words That Are Used to Undermine Women by Lizzie Skurnick
4.0
I will now share the following collection of gems that I transcribed from this enjoyable collection of essays on being anything that defies the status quo while female.
“I was and am driven by relentless curiosity. I wonder about everything all the time. I ask endless questions because the world fascinates me. And this has made me very, very good at my job” by Adaora Udoji (0:40:40).
“To make our arguments heard, in debate and in public discourse, our voices must first and foremost give comfort to men. The way we learn to combat being called a harpy is by having gummy smiles and shiny hair and a general aura of being ever eager to please as if we were golden retrievers, not equals” (1:51) from “Shrill” by Dahlia Lithwick.
“I want people to be better people, even if that means they have to do hard things. And I would like to be better as well” (5:00) from “Nurturing” by Raquel D’Apice.
“As if pink, and tulle, and lace, and other accoutrements of pretty were inherently disempowering. They are not. They don’t have to be. And that’s a lesson that does not apply only to literal girls. It applies to me. Sometimes I feel pretty. Sometimes I wonder what took me so long” (5:17) from “Pretty” by Stephanie Burt.
“I was and am driven by relentless curiosity. I wonder about everything all the time. I ask endless questions because the world fascinates me. And this has made me very, very good at my job” by Adaora Udoji (0:40:40).
“To make our arguments heard, in debate and in public discourse, our voices must first and foremost give comfort to men. The way we learn to combat being called a harpy is by having gummy smiles and shiny hair and a general aura of being ever eager to please as if we were golden retrievers, not equals” (1:51) from “Shrill” by Dahlia Lithwick.
“I want people to be better people, even if that means they have to do hard things. And I would like to be better as well” (5:00) from “Nurturing” by Raquel D’Apice.
“As if pink, and tulle, and lace, and other accoutrements of pretty were inherently disempowering. They are not. They don’t have to be. And that’s a lesson that does not apply only to literal girls. It applies to me. Sometimes I feel pretty. Sometimes I wonder what took me so long” (5:17) from “Pretty” by Stephanie Burt.