652 Quotes by Erica Jong

I was surprised by my daughter’s generation and how they were rebelling against the ’70s idea that sex was perfect and it should be sought.

As a seasoned insomniac, I knew sometimes the way to beat sleeplessness was to outwit it: to pretend you didn’t care about sleeping. Then sometimes sleep became piqued, like a rejected lover, and crept up to try to seduce you.

As women got little crumbs of power, men began to act paranoid – as if we’d disabled them utterly. Do all women have to keep silent for men to speak? Do all women have to be legless for men to walk?

I think feminism means what it has always meant – women want to use all their gifts, all their talents and be judged impartially for them. I don’t think feminism has ever meant anything else.

We’re programmed for suffering, not joy. The masochism is built in at a very early age. You’re supposed to work and suffer – and the trouble is: you believe it.

The trick is not how much pain you feel – but how much joy you feel.

Sadly, because of the enormous gap between rich and poor, some mothers can afford helpers, but many can’t. Those who can would be kinder to refrain from criticizing other women.

Show me a woman who doesn’t feel guilty and I’ll show you a man.

A concern with ‘public morality’ is – if not the last refuge of a scoundrel – the first foray of the fascist.