--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: He was ugly, himself. Weird-ugly. But…" description: "\"He was ugly, himself. Weird-ugly. But ugliness in a man doesn't matter, much. Ugliness in a woman is her life.\" — Joyce Carol Oates" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d2/joyce-carol-oates-344_life_he-was-ugly-himself-weird-ugly-but-uglin_1259882.png" --- # He was ugly, himself. Weird-ugly. But ugliness in a man… ![“He was ugly, himself. Weird-ugly. But ugliness in a man doesn't matter, much. Ugliness in a woman is her life.” quote by Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d2/joyce-carol-oates-344_life_he-was-ugly-himself-weird-ugly-but-uglin_1259882.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d2/joyce-carol-oates-344_life_he-was-ugly-himself-weird-ugly-but-uglin_1259882.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d2/joyce-carol-oates-344_life_he-was-ugly-himself-weird-ugly-but-uglin_1259882.png) > “He was ugly, himself. Weird-ugly. But ugliness in a man doesn't matter, much. Ugliness in a woman is her life.” [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Physical appearance is judged differently for men and women, with women's looks often unfairly defining their worth **In simple terms:** Women are judged more harshly on looks than men Key Takeaway Recognize and challenge gendered double standards Themes gender beauty double standards Mood critical empathetic Type social philosophical When to use this quote - dating - media representation - workplace evaluation - personal relationships Key Concepts social perception gender inequality Questions to Reflect On - How does this bias affect women's opportunities? - Can we shift focus from appearance to ability? A Different Perspective Not all societies value women solely by appearance ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Matter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/matter/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Ugliness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ugliness/) [Ugliness Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ugliness-man-1956585/) [Ugliness Woman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ugliness-woman-4001519/) [Ugly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ugly/) [Ugly Ugliness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ugly-ugliness-249683/) [Ugly Weird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ugly-weird-2719676/) [Women](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/women/) ## Related quotes > [There is nothing in machinery, there is nothing in embankments and railways and iron bridges and engineering devices to oblige them to be ugly.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells/there-is-nothing-in-machinery-there-is-nothing-in-embankments-and/) [H. G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells/) > [An ugliness unfurled in the moonlight and soft shadow and suffused the whole world. If I were an amoeba, he thought, with an infinitesimal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yukio-mishima/an-ugliness-unfurled-in-the-moonlight-and-soft-shadow-and-suffused/) [Yukio Mishima](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yukio-mishima/) > [The old woman was not only ugly with the ugliness age brings us all but showed signs of formidable ugliness by birth - pickle-jar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/the-old-woman-was-not-only-ugly-with-the-ugliness-age-brings-us-all/) [P. J. 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Fed up of being unwanted. Fed up of being alone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-m-fed-up-with-not-being-good-enough-i-m-fed-up-of-being-ugly-fed-up/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Make up looks pretty on the outside but it doesnt help if you are ugly on the inside. Unless you can eat the make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/make-up-looks-pretty-on-the-outside-but-it-doesnt-help-if-you-are/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Home is where I can look ugly and enjoy it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zhat/home-is-where-i-can-look-ugly-and-enjoy-it/) [Zhat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zhat/) > [“Looks sure can be deceiving: not every ‘ugly’ person is a ‘bad’ person (or is guilty of whatever it is that they are accused…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/looks-sure-can-be-deceiving-not-every-ugly-person-is-a-bad-person-or/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) > [Violence never quashed violence because if you're equipped to do violence then you'll continue that passage. 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Any idiot can be happy in a happy place, but moral courage is required to be happy in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/the-challenge-is-to-resist-circumstances-any-idiot-can-be-happy-in-a/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [The first sentence cant be written until the final sentence is written.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/the-first-sentence-cant-be-written-until-the-final-sentence-is-written/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [“Did you know, Marianne: how by breaking the code that day, you broke it forever? For us all?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/did-you-know-marianne-how-by-breaking-the-code-that-day-you-broke-it/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > ['The Accursed' is very much a novel about social injustice as the consequence of the terrible, tragic division of classes - the exploitation not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/the-accursed-is-very-much-a-novel-about-social-injustice-as-the/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [Keep a light, hopeful heart. But expect the worst.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/keep-a-light-hopeful-heart-but-expect-the-worst/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [And this is the forbidden truth, the unspeakable taboo - that evil is not always repellent but frequently attractive; that it has the power…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/and-this-is-the-forbidden-truth-the-unspeakable-taboo-that-evil-is/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [I don't think that writer's block exists really. I think that when you're trying to do something prematurely, it just won't come. 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