Teach her that the idea of 'gender roles' is absolute nonsense. Do not ever tell her that she should or should not do something because she is a girl. 'Because you are a girl' is never reason for anything. Ever.
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Related I thought you told me you loved stories Have you ever heard a story of an adventurer with a sane pla... SABAA TAHIR Forget the girl who had everything. She died when her father did." "But I--" "Nothing is w... JAY KRISTOFF A girl should not expect special privileges because of her sex but neither should she adjust to prej... BETTY FRIEDAN The Olinka girls do not believe girls should be educated. When I asked a mother why she thought this... ALICE WALKER Love Sorrow Love sorrow. She is yours now, and you must take care of what has... MARY OLIVER I fell for her in summer, my lovely summer girl, From summer she is made, my lovely summer girl... MAGGIE STIEFVATER You should read something else." Why would he have done that to him?" I don't know," she s... NICHOLAS SPARKS She returned his salute with a sly smile—a rare enough event that he eyed her suspiciously. <... G.S. JENNSEN Thanks to April,” she whispered, “you have the wedding you’ve dreamed about ever since you wer... SUSAN ELIZABETH PHILLIPS There's a girl, Dad." He smiled a bit. "A girl." "She kinda hates me, and I ki... JAMIE MCGUIRE There is a girl. I named her love. She has a father. His name is desire. Her mo... DEBASISH MRIDHA Her innocence was maddening. She should know. She should know what her steward had done. She should ... MARIE RUTKOSKI You should date a girl who reads. Date a girl who reads. Date a girl who spends her money on bo... ROSEMARIE URQUICO Katniss: I’m coming back into focus when Caesar asks him if he has a girlfriend back home. P... SUZANNE COLLINS ..when a war ends, what does that look like exactly? do the cells in the body stop detonating t... ANDREA GIBSON The girl was grateful to the young man for every bit of flattery; she wanted to linger for a moment ... MILAN KUNDERA If a novelist tells you something she knows or thinks, and you believe her, that is not because eith... A. S. BYATT Do you love her?” I ask hoarsely. His head whirls toward me. “No.” “You sure about... ERIN WATT You know this girl. Her hair is neither long nor short nor light nor dark. She parts it precise... GABRIELLE ZEVIN MRS PEARCE. Mr Higgins: youre tempting the girl. It’s not right. She should think of the future. GEORGE BERNARD SHAW When you look at her, if you do not feel blessed to have her. She is not yours to kee... PIERRE ALEX JEANTY Don't tell a girl with fire in her veins and hurricane bones what she should and shouldn't do. In th... MELODY LEE The only way a guy should hurt a girl is from hugging her too tight not because he break her heart. DAZZLїиG_Бципу But there is nothing, no trace that she’s ever existed. She is not here. She will never be here ag... CHRISTINE FONSECA Build a house?" exclaimed John. "For the Wendy," said Curly. "For Wendy?" John... J.M. BARRIE A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE .... enough money within her control to move out and rent a place of... PAMELA REDMOND SATRAN She will not be simple and sweet. She will not be what people tell her she should be. E. LOCKHART Boy, do you ever know how to woo a girl, Damon Garratt," she teased. "Only the ones I fee... TERRY TOWERS You’re the world to me,” I whisper onto her lips. “I hope you never forget that.” ... J.A. REDMERSKI I stand before her, meeting her eye to eye and nose to nose. My head takes a slight bow as I clench ... CAMERON JACE If you aren’t willing to love her, do not put dents on her heart that will inf... PIERRE ALEX JEANTY She did a lot of wonderful things for me. She really decided I should go to art school, which I did ... DORIS TURNBAUGH Somewhere inside me is a merciful, forgiving person. Somewhere there is a girl who tries to understa... VERONICA ROTH Eleanor looked up, surprised; the little girl was sliding back in her chair, sullenly refusing her m... SHIRLEY JACKSON What do you do?' she asks, holding out the vest. 'What do you do?' 'What do you do?' she a... BRET EASTON ELLIS Coco Chanel is said to have said that a girl should be two things: who and what she is. I say a girl... MOKOKOMA MOKHONOANA THAT crazed girl improvising her music. Her poetry, dancing upon the shore, Her soul... W.B. YEATS This is Roshana, the last queen of the Amulen Empire, back when my people ruled all the lands from t... JESSICA KHOURY And I understand my sisters when they say every woman has a story that's been told a maxim of one so... MARK GONZALES This is your idea of a bribe?" Solomon's brow was still lifted. The Captain laughed roundly. Th... SARAH BLAKLEY-CARTWRIGHT I'm coming back into focus when Caesar asks him if he has a girlfriend back home. Peeta hesitates, t... SUZANNE COLLINS I may not ever get over her, ... I really do still love that girl. JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE So one time I said to her that she should stop reading it, because it was just depressing, so she wa... M.T. ANDERSON Is it because I'm a girl?" Reluctantly, Bill nodded his head. She looked at him for a mome... STEPHEN KING [...] Mom’s not keeping me out because it’s a dead friend, she’s keeping me out because it’s... DAN WELLS Can you tell me what happened?" Her lips thinned as she shook her head. "'Tis not a happy... JENNY B. JONES The reason I got involved is because I have known Dr. Owens for the past year or so. After I realize... CODY FARRENS I think if you like somebody you have to tell them. It might be embarrassing to say it, but you will... DONALD MILLER Coach: "All right, Patch. let's say you're at a party. the room is full of girls of all shapes and s... BECCA FITZPATRICK She is the force, that you end up reading about in thick novels. She is the kind of woman... JASLEEN KAUR GUMBER Voodoo Girl Her skin is white cloth, and she's all sewn apart and she has many colore... TIM BURTON i deem her insecurities insufferable turn-offs as if the male standard for sexiness i... BRITT GREIFELD You think Bernadette Maguire killed him?” “Uh… no. She’s, like I said, she’s old.”<... DEREK LANDY I've always cautioned her about that. She trusted too many people. The girl would do anything for an... EUGENIA BLIZZARD Studies show: Intelligent girls are more depressed Because they know What the world i... EMILIE AUTUMN If you ever need to confirm that a girl is worth coming back from Hell for, show her your monster ar... RICHARD KADREY Never Flinch.' A cold whisper in her ear. 'Never fear. And never, ever forget.' The girl nodded... JAY KRISTOFF Betrayal is too kind a word to describe a situation in which a father says he loves his daughter but... MARGARET SMITH She sighed. Loudly. "Physical appearance is not what is important." Yeah right. Tell that to an... VIVIAN VANDE VELDE Why do You thus devise Evil against her?' 'For that She is beautiful, delicate; ADELAIDE CRAPSEY It’s not her shape, her face, or her hair that makes her beautiful. Neither is it t... PIERRE ALEX JEANTY There was a little girl Who had a little curl Right in the middle of her forehead. Wh... KRISTEN MCKEE Stick Boy liked Match Girl, He liked her a lot. He liked her cute figure, he thought ... TIM BURTON What a fucking destiny is that... or fate or whaatever is it? ... COme on isn't it k... DEYTH BANGER She asks me silly questions. Like how much do I love her? I smile and look at the sky for... AVIJEET DAS Your daughter is ugly. She knows loss intimately, carries whole cities in her belly. ... WARSAN SHIRE There was a girl I knew who always wanted to be the one to stand out from the crowd Always belie... LINDSAY LOHAN Once upon a time they was two girls," I say. "one girl had black skin, one girl had white." Mae... KATHRYN STOCKETT Do you think they have ice cream here?” Lanie asked. Kyle cocked his eyebrow, obviously... M.K. SCHILLER He leaned forward to inspect her closer. "Is that all hair?" ... Sudden, overwhelming pan... MARISSA MEYER A girl who travels knows that deep down she is escaping reality. So she’ll want someone to give he... LAUREN KLARFELD A beautiful woman should always have at the back of her mind that her ravishing appearance is only a... MICHAEL BASSEY JOHNSON Lovecraft says he knows about tentacles but that motherfucker never bedded a girl from We... DAVE MATTHES Speed. O jest unseen, inscrutable, invisible, As a nose on a man's face, or a weathercock on a ... WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE The Girl With Many Eyes One day in the park I had quite a surprise. I met a girl TIM BURTON And her. What would she do without him? She’s not special, not like BB and Ghostly, who... RAINJOY You know,” she said dreamily, passing over his question, “you’re not nearly as handsome as Lor... LISA KLEYPAS True Love has many forms. But my true love is her...and her name is B.D.C she is an amazing girl who... MICHAEL HENDERSON Woman is not born: she is made. In the making, her humanity is destroyed. She becomes symbol of this... ANDREA DWORKIN Should we call her?Maybe we should give her a RING to see where she is? Get it? Get it? -... CHRIS COLFER Because like the depths of the ocean that calls you home, you will never be easy. But dar... JEANETTE LEBLANC One should never trust a woman who tells her real age. If she tells that, she'll tell anything. OSCAR WILDE Overheard vampire conversation. "Is that Ophelia?" "yep" "She doesn't look well" NEIL LECKMAN AGE DIFFERENCE What if I told you that one day you will meet a girl who is unlike anyone ... LANG LEAV she is a girl who cannot walk her troubles off, or work them off; she is a girl to sit around and gl... DODIE SMITH Sweet Grace amazes me The way that she can see Beyond the man I am To the man that I ... JASON GRAY But she loved her dad; she was a daddy's girl. She said her father had changed the life insurance an... MALINDA GONZALES Why should I blame her that she filled my days With misery, or that she would of late Hav... W.B. YEATS My brother cleared his throat. "I wish she knew that I think she is the most hilarious person on Ear... MICHELLE HODKIN You don't love a girl because of beauty. You love her because she sings a song only you can understa... L.J. SMITH I want Sam to stop liking Craig. Now I guess maybe you think that’s because I am jealous of h... STEPHEN CHBOSKY Anybody can look at a pretty girl and see a pretty girl. An artist can look at a pretty girl and see... ROBERT A. HEINLEIN Gran, for the gods' love, it's talk like yours that starts riots!" I said keeping my voice down. "Wi... TAMORA PIERCE Dear Deborah, Words do not come easily for so many men. We are taught to be strong, to... LISA WINGATE Bite me, Goth princess,” Shane called from the back. “Not literally or anything.” “Mayb... RACHEL CAINE There once was a girl who found herself dead. She peered over the ledge of heaven and saw ... JANDY NELSON She has a wisdom beyond her years. But what I love about her most is that she is a girl. Her playful... ELISABETH SHUE Maybe you should just admit that you're crazy about me," he said, leaning in to kiss her again. R.L. MATHEWSON Here she is,” her mum said, cooing at the baby, “my special girl.” “Oh, cheers,” Valk... DEREK LANDY When last I checked, you were a sorcerer, not a Jedi." "You've seen Star Wars?" "Seen it a... KATE GRIFFIN
More Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
I am drawn, as a reader, to detail-drenched stories about human lives affected as much by the intern... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE I write from real life. I am an unrepentant eavesdropper and a collector of stories. I record bits o... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE Sometimes novels are considered 'important' in the way medicine is - they taste terrible and... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE The knowledge of cooking does not come pre-installed in a vagina. CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE And then we do a much greater disservice to girls, because we raise them to cater to the fragile ego... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE I am angry. We should all be angry. Anger has a long history of bringing about positive change. CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE Some people ask: “Why the word feminist? Why not just say you are a believer in human rights, or s... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE In primary school in south-eastern Nigeria, I was taught that Hosni Mubarak was the president of Egy... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE Lasting love has to be built on mutual regard and respect. It is about seeing the other person. I am... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE I think you travel to search and you come back home to find yourself there. CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE We teach girls to shrink themselves, to make themselves smaller. We say to girls, you can have ambit... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE It is easy to romanticize poverty, to see poor people as inherently lacking agency and will. It is e... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE While writing 'Half of a Yellow Sun,' I enjoyed playing with minor things: inventing a train... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE I have my father's lopsided mouth. When I smile, my lips slope to one side. My doctor sister cal... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE I look young. I heard this said so often that it became irritating. I once worked as a babysitter fo... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE I've always been curious about how much of our cultural baggage we bring to what and how we read... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE I am a person who believes in asking questions, in not conforming for the sake of conforming. I am d... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE Alexa and the other guests, and perhaps even Georgina, all understood the fleeing from war, from the... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE Relaxing your hair is like being in prison. You're caged in. Your hair rules you. You didn't go runn... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE Dear Non-American Black, when you make the choice to come to America, you become black. Stop arguing... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE Race doesn't really exist for you because it has never been a barrier. Black folks don't have that c... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE Successful fiction does not need to be validated by 'real life'; I cringe whenever a writer ... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE Feminism and femininity are not mutually exclusive. It is misogynistic to suggest that they are. Sad... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE Creative writing programmes are not very necessary. They just exist so that people like us can make ... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE I ask questions. I watch the world. And what I have discovered is that the parts of my fiction that ... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE Each of my novels has come from a different place, and the processes are not always entirely conscio... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE A Nigerian acquaintance once asked me if I was worried that men would be intimidated by me. I was no... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE Culture does not make people. People make culture. If it is true that the full humanity of women is ... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE I am a bit of a fundamentalist when it comes to black women's hair. Hair is hair - yet also abou... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE The best novels are those that are important without being like medicine; they have something to say... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE What struck me – with her and with many other female American friends I have – is how invested t... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE I own things I like, but nothing inanimate that I treasure in a deeply consuming way. CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE Racism should never have happened and so you don't get a cookie for reducing it. CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE The only reason you say that race was not an issue is because you wish it was not. We all wish it wa... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE If I were not African, I wonder whether it would be clear to me that Africa is a place where the peo... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE Non-fiction, and in particular the literary memoir, the stylised recollection of personal experience... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE I would come, many years later, to understand why 'To Kill A Mockingbird' is considered '... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE His optimism blinded her. He was full of plans. "I have an idea!" he said often. She imagined him as... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE The problem with looking in the mirror is that you never know how you will feel about what you see. ... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE The educated ones leave, the ones with the potential to right the wrongs. They leave the weak behind... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE She wanted to ask him why they were all strangers who shared the same last name. CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE What if the parents, from the beginning, taught both children to cook Indomie? Cooking, by the way, ... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE These Nigerians have been raised to think of women as inherently guilty. And they have been rai... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE Because when there is true equality, resentment does not exist. CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE Alexa, and the other guests, and perhaps even Georgina, all understood the fleeing from war, from th... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE Later Ginika said, “You could have just said Ngozi is your tribal name and Ifemelu is your jungle ... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE He turned to her and said, “About time,” when the train finally creaked in, with the familiarity... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE Greatness depends on where you are coming from. CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE Perhaps it is time to debate culture. The common story is that in 'real' African culture, be... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE I think I'm ridiculously fortunate. I consider myself a Nigerian - that's home; my sensibili... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE You know, I don't think of myself as anything like a 'global citizen' or anything of the... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE I live half the year in Nigeria, the other half in the U.S. But home is Nigeria - it always will be.... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE I have been writing since I was old enough to spell. I have never considered not writing. CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE That her relationship with him was like being content in a house but always sitting by the window an... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE You must never behave as if your life belongs to a man. Do you hear me?” Aunty Ifeka said. “Your... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE What I find problematic is the suggestion that when, say, Madonna adopts an African child, she is sa... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE There's something very lazy about the way you have loved him blindly for so long without ever critic... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE On the day Princess Diana died, a group of students had gathered before a lecture, talking about wha... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE How was it possible to miss something you no longer wanted? CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE If I had not grown up in Nigeria- and if all I knew of Africa were of popular images- I too would th... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE Power is the ability not just to tell the story of another person, but to make it the definitive sto... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE He felt a hollow space between himself and the person he was supposed to be. CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE I am just as human as the man. CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE If we do something over and over, it becomes normal. If we see the same thing over and over, it beco... CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE I'm trying to tell you that there's a new wave on the continent. A new wave of openness and ... NGOZI OKONJO-IWEALA I can take hardship. I can sleep on the cold floor anytime. I can also sleep on a feather bed. NGOZI OKONJO-IWEALA I know what it means to go to the stream to fetch water... what it means when people are poor and do... NGOZI OKONJO-IWEALA No one can fight corruption for Nigerians except Nigerians. Everyone has to be committed from the to... NGOZI OKONJO-IWEALA One in four sub-Saharan Africans is Nigerian, and it has 140 million dynamic people - chaotic people... NGOZI OKONJO-IWEALA