Inspiring Feminist Quotes From 7 Authors

International Women's Day is round the corner and we thought that we would gather up some of our most favourite empowering quotes from feminist writers. So read on and get inspired!

1. Author of Americanah, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is a writer who strongly identifies as a feminist. She has even written a book called We Should All Be Feminists. She has given birth to a baby girl and her letter to her daughter has been quite a sensation.

Here are some empowering quotes from her:

“We teach girls to shrink themselves, to make themselves smaller. We say to girls, you can have ambition, but not too much. You should aim to be successful, but not too successful. Otherwise, you would threaten the man.”

“I have chosen to no longer be apologetic for my femaleness and my femininity. And I want to be respected in all of my femaleness because I deserve to be.”

2. Here’s a quote from actress Tina Fey’s ultimate feminist book, Bossy Pants:

“Don’t waste your energy trying to educate or change opinions; go over, under, through, and opinions will change organically when you’re the boss. Or they won’t. Who cares? Do your thing, and don’t care if they like it.”

3. Beloved screenwriter Nora Ephron was known for writing classics like Harry Met Sally. Her essays were always insightful and had pithy and captivating observations about womanhood:

“Whatever you choose, however many roads you travel, I hope that you choose not to be a lady. I hope you will find some way to break the rules and make a little trouble out there. And I also hope that you will choose to make some of that trouble on behalf of women."

4. Sylvia Plath who is best known for her classic novel The Bell Jar, had many things to say about women:

“Girls are not machines that you put kindness coins into until sex falls out.

5. Erica Jong wrote the feminist book that became responsible for the development of second wave feminism in the 70s in America. The book, titled Fear of Flying, is known for its unabashed exploration of female sexuality.

“Someday, every woman will have orgasms - like every family has colour TV - and we can all get on with the business of life. ”

“Women are the only exploited group in history to have been idealized into powerlessness.”

6. Maya Angelou the noted writer and civil rights activist, said,

I’m a feminist. I’ve been a female for a long time now. It’d be stupid not to be on my own side.”

7. And finally here is a super inspiring quote from comedian and actress Amy Schumer’s book The Girl With the Lower Back Tattoo.

"Love yourself! You don’t need a man or a boy or a self-proclaimed love expert to tell you what you’re worth. Your power comes from who you are and what you do! You don't need all that noise, that constant hum in the background telling you whether or not you're good enough. All you need is you, your friends, and your family. And you will find the right person for you, if that's what you want -- the one who respects your strength and beauty.”

Also Read: Powerful Quotes From 7 Women Writers at JLF