Asking For It Quotes

“When did we all become fluent in this language that none of us wanted to learn?”
― Louise O'Neill, Asking For It

“Similarly, he forgot - or never really understood - that we live in a culture where men, as a group, have more power than women.

This isn't a controversial statement, despite the protestations of guys who funnel their frustration that not all extremely young, conventionally attractive women want to sleep with them into and argument that women, as a group, have "all the power." (Bill Maher, repping for his fan base, famously jokes that men have to do all sorts of shit to get laid, but women only have to do "their hair.")

The really great thing about this argument is how the patently nonsensical premise - that some young women's ability to manipulate certain men equals a greater degree of gendered power than say, owning the presidency for 220-odd years - obscures the most chilling part: in this mindset, "all the power" means, simply, the power to withhold consent.

Let that sink in for a minute. If one believes women are more powerful that men because we own practically all of the vaginas, then women's power to withhold consent to sex is the greatest power there is.

Which means the guy who can take away a woman's right to consent is basically a superhero. Right?”
― Kate Harding, Asking for It: The Alarming Rise of Rape Culture and What We Can Do about It

“Pay attention to the secrets you keep. You don't have to share everything with everyone - but sometimes the very things you hide are the things you least need to keep inside.”
― Lilah Pace, Asking for It

“What we have cuts too deep. Matters too much. Jonah and I will find our way back to each other, or we'll drift apart forever. We won't wind up with anything in between.”
― Lilah Pace, Asking for It