Naomi Alderman Quotes

It's the idea that when you say 'actress', people think of an airy, floaty, no-brain person, which of course you can't be if you are an actor. It is an unfortunate word, which is why, for a time, I hung on to 'actor', because it just seemed more workmanlike, you know, like you say 'woman doctor' not 'doctoress'.

I just get so fed up with seeing the same things written about me. If I see the words 'ice queen' attached to me, I feel like banging my head against the wall. There's this perception that I can only be in a film if I have a glass of champagne in my hand and a stately home in the background.

The problem for all women is we're identified by how we look instead of by our heads and our hearts.

I don't see why I can't have friends of both sexes without wild rumors being circulated. It's crazy.

If you're a man and you ask questions, you're a genius; if you're a woman, you're difficult.

How can a woman be expected to be happy with a man who insists on treating her as if she were a perfectly normal human being.

Black people and women suffer from a presumption of incompetence. The burdens of proof are different. It just gets so tiresome.

In our society, people look at women who are tenacious, smart, attractive, and talented and for whatever reason say, 'There must be something wrong with that equation. She couldn't possibly be all of those things at once.'

I went to a technology conference in Germany, and there were these beautiful, model-like women standing there in front of the products. I asked a question, and she had no clue what the product was. She had to call someone from the back to explain it to me. To me, that's using a woman as an object. To me, that's totally wrong.

I really feel like females have to go 50 extra miles. Not just one - 50 extra miles to be accepted or taken seriously.

I think I've been completely underestimated in the past because of my blonde hair.

You walk into a room and there's already judgment. You know, like football players can't act or you're going to come in and be stiff.

How sexist and rude to say that my job defines my character.

I can't tell you the number of times I have been underestimated, objectified or deprived of fair credit for my accomplishments based on my gender or ethnicity.

I got a lot of crap for being named SZA but not being affiliated with Wu-Tang, and being a girl.

I didn't want to be a boy, ever, but I was outraged that his height and intelligence were graces for him and gaucheries for me.

A man is commanding - a woman is demanding. A man is forceful - a woman is pushy. A man is uncompromising - a woman is a ball-breaker. A man is a perfectionist - a woman's a pain in the ass. He's assertive - she's aggressive. He strategizes - she manipulates. He shows leadership - she's controlling. He's committed - she's obsessed. He's persevering - she's relentless. He sticks to his guns - she's stubborn. If a man wants to get it right, he's looked up to and respected. If a woman wants to get it right, she's difficult and impossible.

It's acceptable for men to act the fool. When women try, they're considered aggressive and opinionated.

There is more sexism in a year's worth of movies than actually exists in a woman's entire lifetime.

I hate women because they have brought into the currency of our language such expressions as "all righty" and "yes indeedy" and hundreds of others.

Practically anything you read or hear about racism, sexism, and homophobia is cant.

It's like I'm managing to achieve all this success in spite of my affliction ... Would you ever put that in the headline for a male star?

Did you know I have always suspected that men were idiots," Daphne ground out, "but I was never positive until today.

A man can be called ruthless if he bombs a country to oblivion. A woman can be called ruthless if she puts you on hold.

If a guy married a woman and the guy was more famous, the world wouldn't deem it an inequal relationship. But if you have a guy marrying a woman who is more well-known, more, in quotes, "powerful," more wealthy, then there's a kind of reverse sexism that comes out, right?