--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Promiscuous ... was a word I had never…" description: "\"Promiscuous ... was a word I had never applied to myself. Possibly no one ever does, for it is a sordid word, reducing many valuable moments to nothing..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/27c/marya-mannes-6222_copulation_promiscuous-was-a-word-i-had-never-appli_1678660.png" --- # Promiscuous ... was a word I had never applied to myself… ![“Promiscuous ... was a word I had never applied to myself. Possibly no one ever does, for it is a sordid word, reducing many valuable moments to nothing more than doglike copulation.” quote by Marya Mannes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/27c/marya-mannes-6222_copulation_promiscuous-was-a-word-i-had-never-appli_1678660.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/27c/marya-mannes-6222_copulation_promiscuous-was-a-word-i-had-never-appli_1678660.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/27c/marya-mannes-6222_copulation_promiscuous-was-a-word-i-had-never-appli_1678660.png) > “Promiscuous ... was a word I had never applied to myself. Possibly no one ever does, for it is a sordid word, reducing many valuable moments to nothing more than doglike copulation.” [Marya Mannes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-mannes/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The term 'promiscuous' is socially stigmatizing, reducing complex experiences to a crude label **In simple terms:** Labels can diminish the value of personal experiences Key Takeaway Reject harmful labels and honor your experiences Themes gender social stigma language Mood critical reflective Type analytical philosophical When to use this quote - dating culture - self-esteem - social judgment Key Concepts feminist critique sexual autonomy Questions to Reflect On - How do labels affect self-worth? - Can we reclaim language around sexuality? A Different Perspective Societal norms may pressure acceptance of such labels ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Copulation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/copulation/) [Doe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doe/) [Doglike Copulation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doglike-copulation-935084/) [Moments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moments/) [Promiscuous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/promiscuous/) [Promiscuous Word](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/promiscuous-word-935083/) [Reducing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reducing/) [Sordid Word](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sordid-word-935085/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Valuable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/valuable/) ## Related quotes > [Democracy is perhaps the most promiscuous word in the world of public affairs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-crick/democracy-is-perhaps-the-most-promiscuous-word-in-the-world-of-public/) [Bernard Crick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-crick/) > [In general, I don't care for scenes of copulation.Certain functions of the human body are bloody private.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-holden/in-general-i-don-t-care-for-scenes-of-copulation-certain-functions-of/) [William Holden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-holden/) > [Copulation is no more foul to me than death is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/copulation-is-no-more-foul-to-me-than-death-is/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [“He copulated with a number of girls, but copulation was not the joy it ought to be. It was a mere relief of need,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/he-copulated-with-a-number-of-girls-but-copulation-was-not-the-joy-it/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [“Maybe he had become addicted after all—addicted to being the pivot point, to being as central as that crucial joint between copulating man and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-robert-lee/maybe-he-had-become-addicted-after-all-addicted-to-being-the-pivot/) [Victor Robert Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-robert-lee/) > [Storytelling and copulation are the two chief forms of amusement in the South. They’re inexpensive and easy to procure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-penn-warren/storytelling-and-copulation-are-the-two-chief-forms-of-amusement-in-2/) [Robert Penn Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-penn-warren/) > [“Fake Math owes its existence to a number of things and people who have inspired and assisted this book on its way into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-fitzpatrick/fake-math-owes-its-existence-to-a-number-of-things-and-people-who/) [ryan fitzpatrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-fitzpatrick/) > [Thus, in pornographic novels, action has to be limited to the copulation of clichés.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-nabokov/thus-in-pornographic-novels-action-has-to-be-limited-to-the/) [Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) > [Adriana loved even the rank animal smell of the man's body, her sweat-slicked breasts and belly flattened beneath him, and her arms and legs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/adriana-loved-even-the-rank-animal-smell-of-the-man-s-body-her-sweat/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [Storytelling and copulation are the two chief forms of amusement in the South. Theyre inexpensive and easy to procure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-penn-warren/storytelling-and-copulation-are-the-two-chief-forms-of-amusement-in/) [Robert Penn Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-penn-warren/) > [“We don't need less kids, just more middle managers...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-fitzpatrick/we-don-t-need-less-kids-just-more-middle-managers/) [ryan fitzpatrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-fitzpatrick/) > [“Mental Penetration isn't about physical copulation but a cerebral stimulation causing ejaculations of the mind...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sanjo-jendayi/mental-penetration-isn-t-about-physical-copulation-but-a-cerebral/) [Sanjo Jendayi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sanjo-jendayi/) > [What's the point of a revolution without general copulation copulation copulation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-weiss/what-s-the-point-of-a-revolution-without-general-copulation/) [Peter Weiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-weiss/) > [“Marriage is the commodification of affection, copulation, and, reproduction.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/marriage-is-the-commodification-of-affection-copulation-and/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) > ['Promiscuous' implies that I'm not choosy. In fact I'm very choosy. I just happen to have had a lot of choices.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacki-weaver/promiscuous-implies-that-i-m-not-choosy-in-fact-i-m-very-choosy-i/) [Jacki Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacki-weaver/) ## More by Marya Mannes > [fear has always been a diminisher of life. Whether bred in the bogs of superstition or clothed in the brocades of dogma and ritual,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-mannes/fear-has-always-been-a-diminisher-of-life-whether-bred-in-the-bogs-of/) [Marya Mannes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-mannes/) > [Timing and arrogance are decisive factors in the successful use of talent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-mannes/timing-and-arrogance-are-decisive-factors-in-the-successful-use-of/) [Marya Mannes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-mannes/) > [To be at peace with self, to find company and nourishment in self-this would be the test of the free and productive psyche.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-mannes/to-be-at-peace-with-self-to-find-company-and-nourishment-in-self-this/) [Marya Mannes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-mannes/) > [The process of maturing is an art to be learned, an effort to be sustained. By the age of fifty you have made yourself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-mannes/the-process-of-maturing-is-an-art-to-be-learned-an-effort-to-be/) [Marya Mannes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-mannes/) > [A musical audience is at best uninspiring, at worst definitely drab. ... Respectability hangs like a pall over the orchestra and the boxes; a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-mannes/a-musical-audience-is-at-best-uninspiring-at-worst-definitely-drab/) [Marya Mannes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-mannes/) > [Lie down and listen to the crabgrass grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-mannes/lie-down-and-listen-to-the-crabgrass-grow/) [Marya Mannes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-mannes/) > [the overwhelming majority of people who are engaged in the processes of thought and expression are Democrats because the essence of thought is exploration…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-mannes/the-overwhelming-majority-of-people-who-are-engaged-in-the-processes/) [Marya Mannes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-mannes/) > [The suppression of civil liberties is too many less a matter for horror than the curtailment of the freedom to profit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-mannes/the-suppression-of-civil-liberties-is-too-many-less-a-matter-for/) [Marya Mannes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-mannes/) > [Euthanasia ... is simply to be able to die with dignity at a moment when life is devoid of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-mannes/euthanasia-is-simply-to-be-able-to-die-with-dignity-at-a-moment-when/) [Marya Mannes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-mannes/) > [To know the good is to react against the bad. Indifference is the mark of deprivation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-mannes/to-know-the-good-is-to-react-against-the-bad-indifference-is-the-mark/) [Marya Mannes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-mannes/) > [Surely the hold of great music on the listener is precisely this: that the listener is made whole; and at the same time part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-mannes/surely-the-hold-of-great-music-on-the-listener-is-precisely-this-that/) [Marya Mannes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-mannes/) > [It is privilege of living to be acutely, agonizingly conscious of the moment that is always present and always passing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-mannes/it-is-privilege-of-living-to-be-acutely-agonizingly-conscious-of-the/) [Marya Mannes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-mannes/) > [When women can cherish the vulnerability of men as much as men can exult in the strength of women, a new breed could lift…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-mannes/when-women-can-cherish-the-vulnerability-of-men-as-much-as-men-can/) [Marya Mannes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-mannes/) > [I don't think the advertisers have any real idea of their power not only to reflect but to mold society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-mannes/i-don-t-think-the-advertisers-have-any-real-idea-of-their-power-not/) [Marya Mannes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-mannes/) > [The greatest miracle of all, the human being.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-mannes/the-greatest-miracle-of-all-the-human-being/) [Marya Mannes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-mannes/) [Explore all 99 Marya Mannes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-mannes/) ## More Copulation quotes > [“Marriage is the commodification of affection, copulation, and, reproduction.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/marriage-is-the-commodification-of-affection-copulation-and/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) > [What's the point of a revolution without general copulation copulation copulation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-weiss/what-s-the-point-of-a-revolution-without-general-copulation/) [Peter Weiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-weiss/) > [“Mental Penetration isn't about physical copulation but a cerebral stimulation causing ejaculations of the mind...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sanjo-jendayi/mental-penetration-isn-t-about-physical-copulation-but-a-cerebral/) [Sanjo Jendayi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sanjo-jendayi/) > [“We don't need less kids, just more middle managers...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-fitzpatrick/we-don-t-need-less-kids-just-more-middle-managers/) [ryan fitzpatrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-fitzpatrick/) > [Storytelling and copulation are the two chief forms of amusement in the South. Theyre inexpensive and easy to procure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-penn-warren/storytelling-and-copulation-are-the-two-chief-forms-of-amusement-in/) [Robert Penn Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-penn-warren/) > [Adriana loved even the rank animal smell of the man's body, her sweat-slicked breasts and belly flattened beneath him, and her arms and legs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/adriana-loved-even-the-rank-animal-smell-of-the-man-s-body-her-sweat/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [“Fake Math owes its existence to a number of things and people who have inspired and assisted this book on its way into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-fitzpatrick/fake-math-owes-its-existence-to-a-number-of-things-and-people-who/) [ryan fitzpatrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-fitzpatrick/) > [Storytelling and copulation are the two chief forms of amusement in the South. They’re inexpensive and easy to procure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-penn-warren/storytelling-and-copulation-are-the-two-chief-forms-of-amusement-in-2/) [Robert Penn Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-penn-warren/) > [“Maybe he had become addicted after all—addicted to being the pivot point, to being as central as that crucial joint between copulating man and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-robert-lee/maybe-he-had-become-addicted-after-all-addicted-to-being-the-pivot/) [Victor Robert Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-robert-lee/) > [“He copulated with a number of girls, but copulation was not the joy it ought to be. It was a mere relief of need,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/he-copulated-with-a-number-of-girls-but-copulation-was-not-the-joy-it/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [Copulation is no more foul to me than death is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/copulation-is-no-more-foul-to-me-than-death-is/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [In general, I don't care for scenes of copulation.Certain functions of the human body are bloody private.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-holden/in-general-i-don-t-care-for-scenes-of-copulation-certain-functions-of/) [William Holden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-holden/) > [Thus, in pornographic novels, action has to be limited to the copulation of clichés.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-nabokov/thus-in-pornographic-novels-action-has-to-be-limited-to-the/) [Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) [Browse all 14 Copulation quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/copulation/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Promiscuous ... was a word I had never applied to myself. 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