--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: First the fact that the only items on…" description: "\"“First the fact that the only items on open display seem to be tampons, breast pumps, and douches, making one feel as a female more soiled and wretched..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/651/belle-de-jour-35860_thousand-years_first-the-fact-that-the-only-items-on-op_1677731.jpg" --- # First the fact that the only items on open display seem to… ![“First the fact that the only items on open display seem to be tampons, breast pumps, and douches, making one feel as a female more soiled and wretched than even two thousand years of Catholic catechism could do.” quote by Belle de Jour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/651/belle-de-jour-35860_thousand-years_first-the-fact-that-the-only-items-on-op_1677731.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/651/belle-de-jour-35860_thousand-years_first-the-fact-that-the-only-items-on-op_1677731.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/651/belle-de-jour-35860_thousand-years_first-the-fact-that-the-only-items-on-op_1677731.jpg) > ““First the fact that the only items on open display seem to be tampons, breast pumps, and douches, making one feel as a female more soiled and wretched than even two thousand years of Catholic catechism could do.”” [Belle de Jour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/belle-de-jour/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote highlights how a retail environment dominated by feminine hygiene products can make women feel degraded, echoing historical religious oppression. **In simple terms:** Women feel devalued by product focus. Key Takeaway Recognize and challenge degrading representations. Themes gender consumerism body image social critique Mood discontent critical reflective Type social commentary feminist critique cultural observation When to use this quote - shopping malls - online retail - product placement - advertising - public spaces Key Concepts feminist critique cultural commentary Questions to Reflect On - How do retail displays affect self‑esteem? - What alternatives could create inclusive environments? A Different Perspective The impact may vary by individual perception and cultural context. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Female Soiled](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/female-soiled-925452/) [Pumps Douches](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pumps-douches-925454/) [Soiled](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soiled-925456/) [Soiled Wretched](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soiled-wretched-925453/) [Tampons Breast](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tampons-breast-925455/) [Thousand years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thousand-years/) ## Related quotes > [The mind that becomes soiled in youth can never again be washed clean. I know this by my own experience, & to this day…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/the-mind-that-becomes-soiled-in-youth-can-never-again-be-washed-clean/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [My death, taking the light from my eyes, gives back to the day the purity which they soiled.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-racine/my-death-taking-the-light-from-my-eyes-gives-back-to-the-day-the/) [Jean Racine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-racine/) > [A soiled baby with a neglected nose cannot be conscientiously regarded as a thing of beauty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/a-soiled-baby-with-a-neglected-nose-cannot-be-conscientiously/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [That the hands of the sisters Death and Night incessantly softly wash again and ever again, this soiled world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/that-the-hands-of-the-sisters-death-and-night-incessantly-softly-wash/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [There are passages of the Bible that are soiled forever by the touches of the hands of ministers who delight in the cheap jokes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phillips-brooks/there-are-passages-of-the-bible-that-are-soiled-forever-by-the/) [Phillips Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phillips-brooks/) > [“Absence of that knowledge has rendered us a nation of wary label-readers, oddly uneasy in our obligate relationship with the things we eat ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/absence-of-that-knowledge-has-rendered-us-a-nation-of-wary-label/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [“Midway between the too soiled ground and the too-sublime vaults, at the level of the air, entering the skin of the role, poetry plays…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-leiris/midway-between-the-too-soiled-ground-and-the-too-sublime-vaults-at/) [Michel Leiris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-leiris/) > [It was that white cloak that soiled me, not the other way around.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-was-that-white-cloak-that-soiled-me-not-the-other-way-around/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“First, a bath. I'm feeling soiled. Too much contact with cold reality, I think.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-greenwood/first-a-bath-i-m-feeling-soiled-too-much-contact-with-cold-reality-i/) [Kerry Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-greenwood/) > [“Whenever I think about ancient cultures nostalgia seizes me. Perhaps this is nothing but envy of the sweet slowness of the history of that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/whenever-i-think-about-ancient-cultures-nostalgia-seizes-me-perhaps/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [“He still heard his mother's voice--"Davey"--rise like whisper-dust from unseen corners in the house, but it was no longer the only voice he heard.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-spinelli/he-still-heard-his-mother-s-voice-davey-rise-like-whisper-dust-from/) [Jerry Spinelli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-spinelli/) > [“days of the earliest Church? I ask you: Do you want things to go on as usual, or do you want to see God…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-t-kendall/days-of-the-earliest-church-i-ask-you-do-you-want-things-to-go-on-as/) [R. T. Kendall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-t-kendall/) > [Ring out false pride in place and blood, The civic slander and the spite; Ring in the love of truth and right, Ring in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-the-great/ring-out-false-pride-in-place-and-blood-the-civic-slander-and-the/) [Alfred the Great](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-the-great/) > [A thousand years may scare form a state. An hour may lay it in ruins.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-byron/a-thousand-years-may-scare-form-a-state-an-hour-may-lay-it-in-ruins/) [Lord Byron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-byron/) > [Memory revises me. Even now a letter comes from a place I don’t know, from someone with my name and postmarked years ago, while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/li-young-lee/memory-revises-me-even-now-a-letter-comes-from-a-place-i-don-t-know/) [Li-Young Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/li-young-lee/) ## More by Belle de Jour > [“C is for Cash Only. I don't take cards. Where would I put the swipe machine?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/belle-de-jour/c-is-for-cash-only-i-don-t-take-cards-where-would-i-put-the-swipe/) [Belle de Jour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/belle-de-jour/) > [Sometimes I wonder if I met everyone in my life in the wrong order.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/belle-de-jour/sometimes-i-wonder-if-i-met-everyone-in-my-life-in-the-wrong-order/) [Belle de Jour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/belle-de-jour/) > [“In a world of twelve-years-olds in sexy boots and nans in sparkly mini-dresses, the surest way to tell the prostitute walking into a hotel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/belle-de-jour/in-a-world-of-twelve-years-olds-in-sexy-boots-and-nans-in-sparkly/) [Belle de Jour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/belle-de-jour/) > [“Holding your stomach in when your clothes are off is not fuckable. Slapping your ample behind and inviting him to ride the wobble is.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/belle-de-jour/holding-your-stomach-in-when-your-clothes-are-off-is-not-fuckable/) [Belle de Jour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/belle-de-jour/) > [Time is limited and some opportunities never repeat themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/belle-de-jour/time-is-limited-and-some-opportunities-never-repeat-themselves/) [Belle de Jour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/belle-de-jour/) > [Male egos require constant stroking. Every task is an achievement, every success epic. That is why women cook, but men are chefs: we make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/belle-de-jour/male-egos-require-constant-stroking-every-task-is-an-achievement/) [Belle de Jour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/belle-de-jour/) > [“Having interests translates as confidence to do and be things on your own without expecting a man to do and be for you. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/belle-de-jour/having-interests-translates-as-confidence-to-do-and-be-things-on-your/) [Belle De Jour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/belle-de-jour/) > [“London wasn't the first city I'd lived in, but it was certainly the largest. Anywhere else there is always the chance of seeing someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/belle-de-jour/london-wasn-t-the-first-city-i-d-lived-in-but-it-was-certainly-the/) [Belle de Jour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/belle-de-jour/) > [“Escape Hatches - A Brief Consideration... North America. Pros: charming accent might attract general goodwill, free drinks. Cons: am frightened by the concept of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/belle-de-jour/escape-hatches-a-brief-consideration-north-america-pros-charming/) [Belle de Jour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/belle-de-jour/) > [“Why fantasize about what you already experience? I go to the written word for places and faces that I don't get at home. Hot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/belle-de-jour/why-fantasize-about-what-you-already-experience-i-go-to-the-written/) [Belle de Jour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/belle-de-jour/) > [in love: a momentary instance of bein almost interested in someone else as in oneself!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/belle-de-jour/in-love-a-momentary-instance-of-bein-almost-interested-in-someone/) [Belle de Jour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/belle-de-jour/) > [Don't ever turn down pleasure because you were afraid of what other people might say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/belle-de-jour/don-t-ever-turn-down-pleasure-because-you-were-afraid-of-what-other/) [Belle de Jour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/belle-de-jour/) [Explore all 13 Belle de Jour quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/belle-de-jour/) ## More Thousand years quotes > [Memory revises me. Even now a letter comes from a place I don’t know, from someone with my name and postmarked years ago, while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/li-young-lee/memory-revises-me-even-now-a-letter-comes-from-a-place-i-don-t-know/) [Li-Young Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/li-young-lee/) > [A thousand years may scare form a state. An hour may lay it in ruins.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-byron/a-thousand-years-may-scare-form-a-state-an-hour-may-lay-it-in-ruins/) [Lord Byron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-byron/) > [Ring out false pride in place and blood, The civic slander and the spite; Ring in the love of truth and right, Ring in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-the-great/ring-out-false-pride-in-place-and-blood-the-civic-slander-and-the/) [Alfred the Great](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-the-great/) > [“days of the earliest Church? I ask you: Do you want things to go on as usual, or do you want to see God…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-t-kendall/days-of-the-earliest-church-i-ask-you-do-you-want-things-to-go-on-as/) [R. T. Kendall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-t-kendall/) > [“He still heard his mother's voice--"Davey"--rise like whisper-dust from unseen corners in the house, but it was no longer the only voice he heard.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-spinelli/he-still-heard-his-mother-s-voice-davey-rise-like-whisper-dust-from/) [Jerry Spinelli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-spinelli/) > [“Whenever I think about ancient cultures nostalgia seizes me. Perhaps this is nothing but envy of the sweet slowness of the history of that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/whenever-i-think-about-ancient-cultures-nostalgia-seizes-me-perhaps/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [“Man is not a 'fixed and limited animal whose nature is absolutely constant'. He changed drastically when he developed 'divided consciousness' to cope with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-wilson/man-is-not-a-fixed-and-limited-animal-whose-nature-is-absolutely/) [Colin Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-wilson/) > [“Let us consider humanity a biogram (the basic DNA blueprint of the human organism and its potentials) united with a logogram (this set of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-shea/let-us-consider-humanity-a-biogram-the-basic-dna-blueprint-of-the/) [Robert Shea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-shea/) > [“Finally, someone had seen him. And what had he done? Let her get away. Undermined by his disgusting human anatomy. It had just been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-marie-moning/finally-someone-had-seen-him-and-what-had-he-done-let-her-get-away/) [Karen Marie Moning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-marie-moning/) > [“The sorrow bird: We've gone too far. I'm afraid we can't go back. Hoopoe: Back?... There's a circle, bird. Why, just think of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-s-s/the-sorrow-bird-we-ve-gone-too-far-i-m-afraid-we-can-t-go-back-hoopoe/) [Peter Sís](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-s-s/) > [“Change the fabric of their culture? It hasn’t happened yet, not in two thousand years. And it won’t happen now.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-webb/change-the-fabric-of-their-culture-it-hasn-t-happened-yet-not-in-two/) [James Webb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-webb/) > [“Revelation Chapter 18 details the many goods which are sold through the Daughter of Babylon’s ports. The lengthy list appears in Revelation 18:11-13. Take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-price/revelation-chapter-18-details-the-many-goods-which-are-sold-through/) [John Price](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-price/) > [The germs of existence contained in this spot of earth, with ample food, and ample room to expand in, would fill millions of worlds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-malthus/the-germs-of-existence-contained-in-this-spot-of-earth-with-ample/) [Thomas Malthus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-malthus/) > [To be original is to discover the commonplace of a thousand years--to face at first the sneer that no one would have thought of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-stanley-lee/to-be-original-is-to-discover-the-commonplace-of-a-thousand-years-to/) [Gerald Stanley Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-stanley-lee/) > [“You are a military man and should know better. If there is one science into which man has probed continuously and successfully, it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/you-are-a-military-man-and-should-know-better-if-there-is-one-science/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) [Browse all 1,602 Thousand years quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thousand-years/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“First the fact that the only items on open display seem to be tampons, breast pumps, and douches, making one feel as a female more soiled and wretched than even two thousand years of Catholic catechism could do.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Belle de Jour" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/belle-de-jour/first-the-fact-that-the-only-items-on-open-display-seem-to-be-tampons/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Thousand years" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/belle-de-jour/first-the-fact-that-the-only-items-on-open-display-seem-to-be-tampons/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/651/belle-de-jour-35860_thousand-years_first-the-fact-that-the-only-items-on-op_1677731.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/651/belle-de-jour-35860_thousand-years_first-the-fact-that-the-only-items-on-op_1677731.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/651/belle-de-jour-35860_thousand-years_first-the-fact-that-the-only-items-on-op_1677731.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“First the fact that the only items on open display seem to be tampons, breast pumps, and douches, making one…” — Belle de Jour", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Belle de Jour", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/belle-de-jour/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“First the fact that the only...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/belle-de-jour/first-the-fact-that-the-only-items-on-open-display-seem-to-be-tampons/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/belle-de-jour/first-the-fact-that-the-only-items-on-open-display-seem-to-be-tampons/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```