--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Competition between women is good only if…" description: "\"Competition between women is good only if it does not prevail; that is to say if it coexists with affinity, affection, with a real sense of being mutua..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e9/elena-ferrante-2338_affection_competition-between-women-is-good-only-i_2313478.jpg" --- # Competition between women is good only if it does not… ![“Competition between women is good only if it does not prevail; that is to say if it coexists with affinity, affection, with a real sense of being mutually indispensable, with sudden peaks of solidarity in spite of envy, jealousy and the whole inevitable cohort of bad feelings.” quote by Elena Ferrante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e9/elena-ferrante-2338_affection_competition-between-women-is-good-only-i_2313478.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e9/elena-ferrante-2338_affection_competition-between-women-is-good-only-i_2313478.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e9/elena-ferrante-2338_affection_competition-between-women-is-good-only-i_2313478.jpg) > “Competition between women is good only if it does not prevail; that is to say if it coexists with affinity, affection, with a real sense of being mutually indispensable, with sudden peaks of solidarity in spite of envy, jealousy and the whole inevitable cohort of bad feelings.” [Elena Ferrante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elena-ferrante/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Female competition can be healthy if it coexists with mutual support, affection, and solidarity, preventing envy from dominating relationships. **In simple terms:** Competition is fine when paired with genuine friendship and solidarity. Key Takeaway Foster cooperation alongside healthy rivalry. Themes friendship competition solidarity Mood thoughtful hopeful Type advice inspirational When to use this quote - workplace - family - community groups - social groups Key Concepts sociology gender dynamics Questions to Reflect On - How can you turn rivalry into mutual growth? - What practices sustain affection amid competition? A Different Perspective If rivalry turns hostile, it can damage bonds. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Affection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/affection/) [Affinity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/affinity/) [Bad feelings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-feelings/) [Coexist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/coexist/) [Coexists Affinity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/coexists-affinity-5504185/) [Competition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/competition/) [Doe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doe/) [Envy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/envy/) [Envy Jealousy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/envy-jealousy-241285/) [Feelings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feelings/) [Feminism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feminism/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Indispensable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/indispensable/) [Inevitable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inevitable/) [Jealousy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jealousy/) [Jealousy Inevitable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jealousy-inevitable-5504184/) [Real](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/real/) [Solidarity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/solidarity/) [Spite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spite/) [Spite Envy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spite-envy-3518942/) [Whole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/whole/) ## Related quotes > [We make ourselves fools to disport ourselves And spend our flatteries to drink those men Upon whose age we void it up again With…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/we-make-ourselves-fools-to-disport-ourselves-and-spend-our-flatteries/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“As always, I do not blame anyone. I've tried great debauchery and exhausted my strength in it; but I don't like debauchery and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/as-always-i-do-not-blame-anyone-i-ve-tried-great-debauchery-and/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [Envy and jealousy are the private parts of the human soul. Perhaps the comparison can be extended.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/envy-and-jealousy-are-the-private-parts-of-the-human-soul-perhaps-the/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [“The underbelly of envy and jealousy is an unconscious holding back of yourself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-deb-sandella/the-underbelly-of-envy-and-jealousy-is-an-unconscious-holding-back-of/) [Dr. Deb Sandella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-deb-sandella/) > [Don't let anyone mock the nature of your abilities; everyone has a unique quality and attribute.the ones who nit pick your individuality exhibit envy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emerah-marie/don-t-let-anyone-mock-the-nature-of-your-abilities-everyone-has-a/) [Emerah Marie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emerah-marie/) > [The Soul of the World is nourished by people's happiness. And also by unhappiness, envy, and jealousy. To realize one's Personal Legend is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/the-soul-of-the-world-is-nourished-by-people-s-happiness-and-also-by-2/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [Possibly, more people kill themselves and others out of hurt vanity than out of envy, jealousy, malice or desire for revenge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/possibly-more-people-kill-themselves-and-others-out-of-hurt-vanity/) [Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/) > [I never engaged in public affairs for my own interest, pleasure, envy, jealousy, avarice or ambition, or even the desire of fame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-adams/i-never-engaged-in-public-affairs-for-my-own-interest-pleasure-envy/) [John Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-adams/) > [Drop envy and jealousy, otherwise there is no possibility , because love cannot exist where envy and jealousies exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/drop-envy-and-jealousy-otherwise-there-is-no-possibility-because-love/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [ American society \[...\] not only sanctions gross and unfair relations among men, but it encourages them. Now, can that be denied? No. Rivalry, competition,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-roth/american-society-not-only-sanctions-gross-and-unfair-relations-among/) [Philip Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-roth/) > [Negative states of mind, such as anger, resentment, fear, envy, and jealousy, are products of the ego.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/negative-states-of-mind-such-as-anger-resentment-fear-envy-and/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [“The soul of the world is nourished by people's happiness. And also by unhappiness, envy, and jealousy. To realize one's destiny is a person's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/the-soul-of-the-world-is-nourished-by-people-s-happiness-and-also-by/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [“Envy, jealousy, revenge and negativity are some of the basic instinct of women. They cannot help it. We prefer negative thoughts at first place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/himmilicious/envy-jealousy-revenge-and-negativity-are-some-of-the-basic-instinct/) [Himmilicious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/himmilicious/) > [What is envy? It is nothing but passive jealousy. Maybe jealousy is too strong a phenomenon; envy is a little passive. The difference may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/what-is-envy-it-is-nothing-but-passive-jealousy-maybe-jealousy-is-too/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [“—rather than those of more iconic figures such as Ahab, Othello, or Lear, my focus will be on irritation instead of anger, envy rather…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sianne-ngai/rather-than-those-of-more-iconic-figures-such-as-ahab-othello-or-lear/) [Sianne Ngai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sianne-ngai/) ## More by Elena Ferrante > [The circle of an empty day is brutal and at night it tightens around your neck like a noose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elena-ferrante/the-circle-of-an-empty-day-is-brutal-and-at-night-it-tightens-around/) [Elena Ferrante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elena-ferrante/) > [“Quanto a mim, várias vezes ao dia me acontece de gostar de alguém. Você não? Durante pouco tempo, depois passa.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elena-ferrante/quanto-a-mim-v-rias-vezes-ao-dia-me-acontece-de-gostar-de-algu-m-voc/) [Elena Ferrante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elena-ferrante/) > [“Svakog dana sam sebi ponavljala: to sam što sam, i nema mi druge nego da se s tim pomirim; takva sam rođena, u ovom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elena-ferrante/svakog-dana-sam-sebi-ponavljala-to-sam-to-sam-i-nema-mi-druge-nego-da/) [Elena Ferrante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elena-ferrante/) > [“We have too much stuff inside and it swells us, breaks us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elena-ferrante/we-have-too-much-stuff-inside-and-it-swells-us-breaks-us/) [Elena Ferrante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elena-ferrante/) > [“To be born in that city is useful for only one thing: to have always known, almost instinctively, what today, with endless fine distinctions,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elena-ferrante/to-be-born-in-that-city-is-useful-for-only-one-thing-to-have-always/) [Elena Ferrante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elena-ferrante/) > [As a girl - twelve, thirteen years old - I was absolutely certain that a good book had to have a man as its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elena-ferrante/as-a-girl-twelve-thirteen-years-old-i-was-absolutely-certain-that-a/) [Elena Ferrante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elena-ferrante/) > [“Religion will disappear from men's consciousness when, finally, we have constructed a world of equals, without class distinctions, and with a sound of scientific…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elena-ferrante/religion-will-disappear-from-men-s-consciousness-when-finally-we-have/) [Elena Ferrante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elena-ferrante/) > [Elena Ferrante is the author of several novels. There is nothing mysterious about her, given how she manifests herself - perhaps even too much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elena-ferrante/elena-ferrante-is-the-author-of-several-novels-there-is-nothing/) [Elena Ferrante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elena-ferrante/) > [Women, in all fields - whether mothers or not - still encounter an extraordinary number of obstacles. They have to hold too many things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elena-ferrante/women-in-all-fields-whether-mothers-or-not-still-encounter-an/) [Elena Ferrante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elena-ferrante/) > [“Once, she closed the book abruptly and said with annoyance, "That's enough." "Why?" "Because I've had it, it's always the same story: inside something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elena-ferrante/once-she-closed-the-book-abruptly-and-said-with-annoyance-that-s/) [Elena Ferrante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elena-ferrante/) > [“She became transparent skin over bones, her eyes drowning in violet wells, her hands damp spider webs.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elena-ferrante/she-became-transparent-skin-over-bones-her-eyes-drowning-in-violet/) [Elena Ferrante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elena-ferrante/) > [“When you haven’t been in the world long, it’s hard to comprehend what disasters are at the origin of a sense of disaster: maybe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elena-ferrante/when-you-haven-t-been-in-the-world-long-it-s-hard-to-comprehend-what/) [Elena Ferrante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elena-ferrante/) > [“As long as one writes only for oneself, writing is a free act by means of which, to use an oxymoron, one secretly opens…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elena-ferrante/as-long-as-one-writes-only-for-oneself-writing-is-a-free-act-by-means/) [Elena Ferrante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elena-ferrante/) > [“We had the same sensitivity to beautiful things, the same need to enjoy them, the same need to search for the right words to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elena-ferrante/we-had-the-same-sensitivity-to-beautiful-things-the-same-need-to/) [Elena Ferrante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elena-ferrante/) > [Writers, because they write, are condemned never to be readers of their own stories...The memory of first putting a story into words will always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elena-ferrante/writers-because-they-write-are-condemned-never-to-be-readers-of-their/) [Elena Ferrante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elena-ferrante/) [Explore all 122 Elena Ferrante quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elena-ferrante/) ## More Affection quotes > [My team and I have reunited two elements that coexist with diffiulty: respect and affection, because when they love you they don't respect you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shakira/my-team-and-i-have-reunited-two-elements-that-coexist-with-diffiulty/) [Shakira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shakira/) > [Needs cause motivation. Deep-rooted desires for esteem, affection, belonging, achievement, self-actualization, power, and control motivate us to push for what we want and need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorii-myers/needs-cause-motivation-deep-rooted-desires-for-esteem-affection/) [Lorii Myers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorii-myers/) > [“It is to build a house with affection, even as if your beloved were to dwell in that house.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kahlil-gibran/it-is-to-build-a-house-with-affection-even-as-if-your-beloved-were-to/) [Kahlil Gibran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kahlil-gibran/) > [In this choice of inheritance we have given to our frame of polity the image of a relation in blood; binding up the constitution…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/in-this-choice-of-inheritance-we-have-given-to-our-frame-of-polity/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) > [I, measuring his affections by my own, Which then most sought where most might not be found, Being one too many by my weary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/i-measuring-his-affections-by-my-own-which-then-most-sought-where/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [There are a number of qualities which are important for mental peace, but from the little experience I have, I believe that one of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama/there-are-a-number-of-qualities-which-are-important-for-mental-peace/) [Dalai Lama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama/) > [A lost love. Deny it who will, ridicule it, treat it as mere imagination and sentiment, the thing is and will be; and women…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dinah-maria-murlock-craik/a-lost-love-deny-it-who-will-ridicule-it-treat-it-as-mere-imagination/) [Dinah Maria Murlock Craik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dinah-maria-murlock-craik/) > [Affection! Affection is false.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-i/affection-affection-is-false/) [Elizabeth I](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-i/) > [We are a spectacular, splendid manifestation of life. We have language. . . . We have affection. We have genes for usefulness, and usefulness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-thomas/we-are-a-spectacular-splendid-manifestation-of-life-we-have-language/) [Lewis Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-thomas/) > [Listen, I have a great affection and respect for Joe Biden. I think he's been a great vice president. He's taken on a lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-axelrod/listen-i-have-a-great-affection-and-respect-for-joe-biden-i-think-he/) [David Axelrod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-axelrod/) > [The still affection of the heart Became an outward breathing type, That into stillness past again, And left a want unknown before; Although the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lord-tennyson/the-still-affection-of-the-heart-became-an-outward-breathing-type/) [Alfred Lord Tennyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lord-tennyson/) > [I am persuaded that there is no affection of the human heart more exquisitely pure, than that which is felt by a grateful son…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-more/i-am-persuaded-that-there-is-no-affection-of-the-human-heart-more/) [Hannah More](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-more/) > [If you live in a material universe where acquiring things is very important to you, then family is an absolute deterrent to maintaining that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-taylor-gatto/if-you-live-in-a-material-universe-where-acquiring-things-is-very/) [John Taylor Gatto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-taylor-gatto/) > [Our sweetest experiences of affection are meant to be suggestions of that realm which is the home of the heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/our-sweetest-experiences-of-affection-are-meant-to-be-suggestions-of/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [“Georgia O’Keeffe moved to rural New Mexico, from which she would sign her letters to the people she loved, “from the faraway nearby.” It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-solnit/georgia-o-keeffe-moved-to-rural-new-mexico-from-which-she-would-sign/) [Rebecca Solnit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-solnit/) [Browse all 2,465 Affection quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/affection/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Competition between women is good only if it does not prevail; that is to say if it coexists with affinity, affection, with a real sense of being mutually indispensable, with sudden peaks of solidarity in spite of envy, jealousy and the whole inevitable cohort of bad feelings.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Elena Ferrante" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elena-ferrante/competition-between-women-is-good-only-if-it-does-not-prevail-that-is/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Affection" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elena-ferrante/competition-between-women-is-good-only-if-it-does-not-prevail-that-is/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e9/elena-ferrante-2338_affection_competition-between-women-is-good-only-i_2313478.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e9/elena-ferrante-2338_affection_competition-between-women-is-good-only-i_2313478.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e9/elena-ferrante-2338_affection_competition-between-women-is-good-only-i_2313478.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Competition between women is good only if it does not prevail; that is to say if it coexists with affinity…” — Elena Ferrante", "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": "Elena Ferrante", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elena-ferrante/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Competition between women is good only...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elena-ferrante/competition-between-women-is-good-only-if-it-does-not-prevail-that-is/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elena-ferrante/competition-between-women-is-good-only-if-it-does-not-prevail-that-is/#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 } } ] } ```