--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: No matter what a woman's appearance may…" description: "\"No matter what a woman's appearance may be, it will be used to undermine what she is saying and taken to individualize - as her personal problem - obse..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e9/naomi-wolf-1344_appearance_no-matter-what-a-woman-s-appearance-may_1576585.jpg" --- # No matter what a woman's appearance may be, it will be… ![“No matter what a woman's appearance may be, it will be used to undermine what she is saying and taken to individualize - as her personal problem - observations she makes about the beauty myth in society.” quote by Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e9/naomi-wolf-1344_appearance_no-matter-what-a-woman-s-appearance-may_1576585.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e9/naomi-wolf-1344_appearance_no-matter-what-a-woman-s-appearance-may_1576585.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e9/naomi-wolf-1344_appearance_no-matter-what-a-woman-s-appearance-may_1576585.jpg) > “No matter what a woman's appearance may be, it will be used to undermine what she is saying and taken to individualize - as her personal problem - observations she makes about the beauty myth in society.” [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Women’s appearances are often weaponized to dismiss their arguments, turning systemic critique into personal blame. **In simple terms:** Appearance is used to undermine women’s words. Key Takeaway Challenge stereotypes, focus on ideas not looks. Themes gender media power stereotypes Mood frustrated determined Type critical analytical When to use this quote - public speaking - online debate - workplace meetings - media interviews Key Concepts feminism social critique Questions to Reflect On - How can we shift focus from looks to substance? - What strategies protect women’s voices in public discourse? A Different Perspective It may ignore deeper systemic issues beyond individual appearance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Beauty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beauty/) [Beauty myth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beauty-myth/) [Society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/society/) ## Related quotes > [Are you trivialising the sisterhood if you dye your hair or have your eyebrows threaded? I'd say the answer to that is no. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-mensch/are-you-trivialising-the-sisterhood-if-you-dye-your-hair-or-have-your/) [Louise Mensch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-mensch/) > [“The rise of the beauty myth was just one of several emerging social fictions that masqueraded as natural components of the feminine sphere, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/the-rise-of-the-beauty-myth-was-just-one-of-several-emerging-social/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [“Sexual satisfaction eases the stranglehold of materialism, since status symbols no longer look sexual, but irrelevant. Product lust weakens where emotional and sexual lust…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/sexual-satisfaction-eases-the-stranglehold-of-materialism-since/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [As soon as a woman's primary social value could no longer be defined as the attainment of virtuous domesticity, the beauty myth redefined it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/as-soon-as-a-woman-s-primary-social-value-could-no-longer-be-defined/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [Our society does reward beauty on the outside over health on the inside. Women must not be blamed for choosing short-term beauty "fixes" that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/our-society-does-reward-beauty-on-the-outside-over-health-on-the/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [Spokespeople sell women the Iron Maiden and name her "Health": if public discourse were really concerned with women's health, it would turn angrily upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/spokespeople-sell-women-the-iron-maiden-and-name-her-health-if-public/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [The beauty myth is always actually prescribing behaviour and not appearance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/the-beauty-myth-is-always-actually-prescribing-behaviour-and-not/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [“Why does the social order feel the need to defend itself by evading the fact of real women, our faces and voices and bodies,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/why-does-the-social-order-feel-the-need-to-defend-itself-by-evading/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [As women demanded access to power, the power structure used the beauty myth materially to undermine women's advancement.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/as-women-demanded-access-to-power-the-power-structure-used-the-beauty/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [“The beauty myth of the present is more insidious than any mystique of femininity yet: A century ago, Nora slammed the door of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/the-beauty-myth-of-the-present-is-more-insidious-than-any-mystique-of/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [Is the beauty myth good to men? It hurts them by teaching them how to avoid loving women. It prevents men from actually seeing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/is-the-beauty-myth-good-to-men-it-hurts-them-by-teaching-them-how-to/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [“The beauty myth sets it up this way: A high rating as an art object is the most valuable tribute a woman can exact…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/the-beauty-myth-sets-it-up-this-way-a-high-rating-as-an-art-object-is/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [To live in a culture in which women are routinely naked where men aren't is to learn inequality in little ways all day long.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/to-live-in-a-culture-in-which-women-are-routinely-naked-where-men/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [“The qualities that a given period calls beautiful in women are merely symbols of the female behavior that that period considers desirable: The beauty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/the-qualities-that-a-given-period-calls-beautiful-in-women-are-merely/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [Beauty' is a currency system like the gold standard.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/beauty-is-a-currency-system-like-the-gold-standard/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) ## More by Naomi Wolf > [“You could see the signs of female aging as diseased, especially if you had a vested interest in making women too see them your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/you-could-see-the-signs-of-female-aging-as-diseased-especially-if-you/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [Demographically, I'm a hippie from San Francisco and I'm not culturally inclined to be sympathetic to states' rights. My cultural heritage is FDR and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/demographically-i-m-a-hippie-from-san-francisco-and-i-m-not/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [There's been a systematic propagandizing of American citizens for 30 years to make us forget what America is supposed to be and what our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/there-s-been-a-systematic-propagandizing-of-american-citizens-for-30/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [Maybe the less pain we inflict on our bodies, the more beautiful our bodies will look to us](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/maybe-the-less-pain-we-inflict-on-our-bodies-the-more-beautiful-our/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [“The rise of the beauty myth was just one of several emerging social fictions that masqueraded as natural components of the feminine sphere, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/the-rise-of-the-beauty-myth-was-just-one-of-several-emerging-social/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [The Victorian woman became her ovaries, as today's woman has become her "beauty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/the-victorian-woman-became-her-ovaries-as-today-s-woman-has-become/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [“The anthropologist Margaret Mead concluded in 1948, after observing seven different ethnic groups in the Pacific Islands, that different cultures made different forms of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/the-anthropologist-margaret-mead-concluded-in-1948-after-observing/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [What becomes of a man who acquires a beautiful woman, with her "beauty" his sole target? He sabotages himself. He has gained no friend,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/what-becomes-of-a-man-who-acquires-a-beautiful-woman-with-her-beauty/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [“Beauty” is a currency system like the gold standard. Like any economy, it is determined by politics, and in the modern age in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/beauty-is-a-currency-system-like-the-gold-standard-like-any-economy/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [“Rape and sexual assault ... should be understood not just as a form of forced sex, they should also be understood as as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/rape-and-sexual-assault-should-be-understood-not-just-as-a-form-of/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [“The qualities that a given period calls beautiful in women are merely symbols of the female behavior that that period considers desirable: The beauty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/the-qualities-that-a-given-period-calls-beautiful-in-women-are-merely/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [To live in a culture in which women are routinely naked where men aren't is to learn inequality in little ways all day long.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/to-live-in-a-culture-in-which-women-are-routinely-naked-where-men/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [a white person who claims to have no impediment of vision in this country is not, I think, telling the whole truth. And when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/a-white-person-who-claims-to-have-no-impediment-of-vision-in-this/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [“The beauty myth sets it up this way: A high rating as an art object is the most valuable tribute a woman can exact…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/the-beauty-myth-sets-it-up-this-way-a-high-rating-as-an-art-object-is/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [“Societies tell themselves necessary fictions in the same way that individuals and families do. Henrik Ibsen called them “vital lies,” and psychologist Daniel Goleman…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/societies-tell-themselves-necessary-fictions-in-the-same-way-that/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) [Explore all 251 Naomi Wolf quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) ## More Appearance quotes > [Your looks don't make you pretty, it's the person inside who makes you pretty!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-chan/your-looks-don-t-make-you-pretty-it-s-the-person-inside-who-makes-you/) [Aaron Chan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-chan/) > [I just worried about my weight. Worried about my appearance and thought I wan't pretty enough to be a pop star. It was very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-durham/i-just-worried-about-my-weight-worried-about-my-appearance-and/) [Judith Durham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-durham/) > [The essence of worldliness is exclusion of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-jacobsen/the-essence-of-worldliness-is-exclusion-of-god/) [Henry Jacobsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-jacobsen/) > [We must, however, note that what are usually called the high religions made their appearance within about twenty-five hundred years - most of them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-scott-latourette/we-must-however-note-that-what-are-usually-called-the-high-religions/) [Kenneth Scott Latourette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-scott-latourette/) > [First impressions are often the truest, as we find (not infrequently) to our cost, when we have been wheedled out of them by plausible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-hazlitt/first-impressions-are-often-the-truest-as-we-find-not-infrequently-to/) [William Hazlitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-hazlitt/) > [The turning points of lives are not the great moments. The real crises are often concealed in occurrences so trivial in appearance that they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-washington/the-turning-points-of-lives-are-not-the-great-moments-the-real-crises/) [George Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-washington/) > [You can have a nice body, dress with the latest fashion. But if you don't have self-confidence sweetheart, forget about looking sexy, you can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-rambharack/you-can-have-a-nice-body-dress-with-the-latest-fashion-but-if-you-don/) [Glen Rambharack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-rambharack/) > [I cannot be convinced that great artists are moralists. Art is first appearances, then meaning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camille-paglia/i-cannot-be-convinced-that-great-artists-are-moralists-art-is-first/) [Camille Paglia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camille-paglia/) > [So may the outward shows be least themselves; The world is still deceived with ornament.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/so-may-the-outward-shows-be-least-themselves-the-world-is-still/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [We are one of many appearances of the thing called Life; we are not its perfect image, for it has no perfect image except…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loren-eiseley/we-are-one-of-many-appearances-of-the-thing-called-life-we-are-not/) [Loren Eiseley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loren-eiseley/) > [I'm OK with my appearance. I have made my peace with it after a long and frankly exhausting battle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-perkins/i-m-ok-with-my-appearance-i-have-made-my-peace-with-it-after-a-long/) [Sue Perkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-perkins/) > [There is no society or conversation to be kept up in the world without good-nature, or something which must bear its appearance and supply…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/there-is-no-society-or-conversation-to-be-kept-up-in-the-world/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [Appearance records are pretty special. Mine means a lot to me, not only because I love stats, but because it shows that I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-james/appearance-records-are-pretty-special-mine-means-a-lot-to-me-not-only/) [David James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-james/) > [Every man would fall in love with their voice, their lovely appearance, but no man would ever get past that. They'd never really know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-hocking/every-man-would-fall-in-love-with-their-voice-their-lovely-appearance/) [Amanda Hocking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-hocking/) > [I already know what things look like - I don't want description. People believe in appearances, and I don't believe in appearances at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/duane-michals/i-already-know-what-things-look-like-i-don-t-want-description-people/) [Duane Michals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/duane-michals/) Browse all 2,446 Appearance quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "No matter what a woman's appearance may be, it will be used to undermine what she is saying and taken to individualize - as her personal problem - observations she makes about the beauty myth in society.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Naomi Wolf" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/no-matter-what-a-woman-s-appearance-may-be-it-will-be-used-to/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Appearance" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/no-matter-what-a-woman-s-appearance-may-be-it-will-be-used-to/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e9/naomi-wolf-1344_appearance_no-matter-what-a-woman-s-appearance-may_1576585.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e9/naomi-wolf-1344_appearance_no-matter-what-a-woman-s-appearance-may_1576585.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e9/naomi-wolf-1344_appearance_no-matter-what-a-woman-s-appearance-may_1576585.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“No matter what a woman's appearance may be, it will be used to undermine what she is saying and taken to…” — Naomi Wolf", "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": "Naomi Wolf", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "No matter what a woman's appearance...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/no-matter-what-a-woman-s-appearance-may-be-it-will-be-used-to/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/no-matter-what-a-woman-s-appearance-may-be-it-will-be-used-to/#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 } } ] } ```