--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: ...women's bodies are \"inferiorised…" description: "\"“...women's bodies are \"inferiorised, stigmatized . . . within an overarching patriarchal ideology. For example, biologically and physiologically, wome..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/971/sheila-jeffreys-20069_beauty_women-s-bodies-are-inferiorised-stigmati_2461436.png" --- # ...women's bodies are "inferiorised, stigmatized… ![“...women's bodies are "inferiorised, stigmatized . . . within an overarching patriarchal ideology. For example, biologically and physiologically, women's bodies are seen as both disgusting in their natural state and inferior to men's'' (2001, p. 141).” quote by Sheila Jeffreys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/971/sheila-jeffreys-20069_beauty_women-s-bodies-are-inferiorised-stigmati_2461436.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/971/sheila-jeffreys-20069_beauty_women-s-bodies-are-inferiorised-stigmati_2461436.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/971/sheila-jeffreys-20069_beauty_women-s-bodies-are-inferiorised-stigmati_2461436.png) > ““...women's bodies are "inferiorised, stigmatized . . . within an overarching patriarchal ideology. For example, biologically and physiologically, women's bodies are seen as both disgusting in their natural state and inferior to men's'' (2001, p. 141).”” [Sheila Jeffreys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheila-jeffreys/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Patriarchal systems portray women's bodies as both disgusting and inferior, reinforcing gender inequality and limiting agency. **In simple terms:** Women’s bodies are devalued by patriarchy. Key Takeaway Challenge and change oppressive narratives. Themes gender inequality body politics patriarchy feminist critique Mood critical analytical Type feminist academic When to use this quote - policy reform - education - media representation - healthcare advocacy - activism Key Concepts social constructionism intersectionality Questions to Reflect On - How do cultural narratives shape bodily perceptions? - What actions can dismantle these stigmas? A Different Perspective Some argue biological differences justify certain social roles. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Beauty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beauty/) [Bodies Inferiorised](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bodies-inferiorised-660467/) [Body](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) [Disgust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disgust/) [Disgusting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disgusting/) [Inferiorised Stigmatized](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inferiorised-stigmatized-660468/) [Patriarchal Ideology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patriarchal-ideology-660470/) [Physiologically Women](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/physiologically-women-660469/) [Stigma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stigma/) [Women Bodies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/women-bodies/) ## Related quotes > [“A dominant ideology represents the view of a dominant group, often by making the existing order seem inevitable. Thus, by depicting motherhood as natural,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-nakano-glenn/a-dominant-ideology-represents-the-view-of-a-dominant-group-often-by/) [Evelyn Nakano Glenn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-nakano-glenn/) > [Islam, Christianity and Judaism all define themselves through disgust of women's bodies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/polly-toynbee/islam-christianity-and-judaism-all-define-themselves-through-disgust/) [Polly Toynbee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/polly-toynbee/) > [“Men's sexual freedom has depended, and still does to a large extent, upon their ownership of women's bodies. Men have bought, sold and traded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheila-jeffreys/men-s-sexual-freedom-has-depended-and-still-does-to-a-large-extent/) [Sheila Jeffreys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheila-jeffreys/) > [The repossession by women of our bodies will bring far more essential change to human society than the seizing of the means of production…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-rich/the-repossession-by-women-of-our-bodies-will-bring-far-more-essential/) [Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) > [I do not believe that government should be in the business of telling women what they should do with their bodies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamala-harris/i-do-not-believe-that-government-should-be-in-the-business-of-telling/) [Kamala Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamala-harris/) > [The Conversation about women’s bodies exists largely outside of us, while it is also directed at (and marketed to) us, and used to define…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashley-judd/the-conversation-about-women-s-bodies-exists-largely-outside-of-us/) [Ashley Judd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashley-judd/) > [“What civilization has done to women’s bodies is no different than what it’s done to the earth, to children, to the sick, to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tiqqun/what-civilization-has-done-to-women-s-bodies-is-no-different-than/) [Tiqqun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tiqqun/) > [It's like suddenly in the Middle Ages, people figured men should be in charge of women's bodies since they were in charge of pretty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/inga-muscio/it-s-like-suddenly-in-the-middle-ages-people-figured-men-should-be-in/) [Inga Muscio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/inga-muscio/) > [“Women's bodies have a near perfect knowledge of childbirth; it's when their brains get involved that things can go wrong.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peggy-vincent/women-s-bodies-have-a-near-perfect-knowledge-of-childbirth-it-s-when/) [Peggy Vincent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peggy-vincent/) > [Not everyone is there to get an abortion. Your body is like a car that has needs and women's bodies constantly need a level…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jen-kirkman/not-everyone-is-there-to-get-an-abortion-your-body-is-like-a-car-that/) [Jen Kirkman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jen-kirkman/) > [I care more about my economy, national security, and fiscal conservatism than I do about what other women do with their bodies. It's not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meghan-mccain/i-care-more-about-my-economy-national-security-and-fiscal/) [Meghan McCain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meghan-mccain/) > [I don't have a problem with being a woman. Women's bodies are so beautiful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malin-akerman/i-don-t-have-a-problem-with-being-a-woman-women-s-bodies-are-so/) [Malin Akerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malin-akerman/) > [“There are, of course, still people out there who think that the reproductive functions of women's bodies should exclude them from the public sphere.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emer-o-toole/there-are-of-course-still-people-out-there-who-think-that-the/) [Emer O'Toole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emer-o-toole/) > [I've had my body manipulated so many different times for so many different reasons, whether it's paparazzi photographers or for film posters. \[The topless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keira-knightley/i-ve-had-my-body-manipulated-so-many-different-times-for-so-many/) [Keira Knightley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keira-knightley/) > [It should be self-evident that women have the right to make decisions about their own bodies. Yet throughout history, those in power - usually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabella-lovin/it-should-be-self-evident-that-women-have-the-right-to-make-decisions/) [Isabella Lovin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabella-lovin/) ## More by Sheila Jeffreys > [“Women incorporate the values of the male sexual objectifiers within themselves. Catharine MacKinnon calls this being "thingified" in the head (MacKinnon, 1989). They learn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheila-jeffreys/women-incorporate-the-values-of-the-male-sexual-objectifiers-within/) [Sheila Jeffreys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheila-jeffreys/) > [Men have been adjudicating on what women are, and how they should behave, for millennia through the institutions of social control such as religion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheila-jeffreys/men-have-been-adjudicating-on-what-women-are-and-how-they-should/) [Sheila Jeffreys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheila-jeffreys/) > [Girls learn to love and have sexual feelings in a position of low status, and the eroticization of powerlessness is a normal part of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheila-jeffreys/girls-learn-to-love-and-have-sexual-feelings-in-a-position-of-low/) [Sheila Jeffreys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheila-jeffreys/) > [As a feminist, I consider the female pronoun to be an honorific, a term that conveys respect. 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Men have bought, sold and traded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheila-jeffreys/men-s-sexual-freedom-has-depended-and-still-does-to-a-large-extent/) [Sheila Jeffreys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheila-jeffreys/) > [Men's ideas about what women are have been formed from their ruling caste position, and have assigned women characteristics that would most advantage their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheila-jeffreys/men-s-ideas-about-what-women-are-have-been-formed-from-their-ruling/) [Sheila Jeffreys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheila-jeffreys/) > [Pornography is not egalitarian and gender-free. It is predicated upon the inequality of women and is the propaganda that makes that inequality sexy. For…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheila-jeffreys/pornography-is-not-egalitarian-and-gender-free-it-is-predicated-upon/) [Sheila Jeffreys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheila-jeffreys/) > [Masculinity cannot exist without femininity. On its own, masculinity has no meaning, because it is but one half of a set of power relations.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheila-jeffreys/masculinity-cannot-exist-without-femininity-on-its-own-masculinity/) [Sheila Jeffreys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheila-jeffreys/) > [Male supremacy is centered on the act of sexual intercourse, justified by heterosexual practice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheila-jeffreys/male-supremacy-is-centered-on-the-act-of-sexual-intercourse-justified/) [Sheila Jeffreys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheila-jeffreys/) > [Masculinity is part of a binary and requires its opposite, since, in the absence of femininity, masculinity would have no meaning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheila-jeffreys/masculinity-is-part-of-a-binary-and-requires-its-opposite-since-in/) [Sheila Jeffreys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheila-jeffreys/) > [The opposite of heterosexual desire is the eroticising of sameness, a sameness of power, equality and mutuality. It is homosexual desire.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheila-jeffreys/the-opposite-of-heterosexual-desire-is-the-eroticising-of-sameness-a/) [Sheila Jeffreys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheila-jeffreys/) > [“The effect of legalised prostitution on women outside prostitution is to lower the status of all women. 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