---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In itself, homosexuality is as limiting…"
description: "\"In itself, homosexuality is as limiting as heterosexuality: the ideal should be to be capable of loving a woman or a man; either, a human being, withou..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b3e/simone-de-beauvoir-407_fear_in-itself-homosexuality-is-as-limiting-a_1374055.jpg"
---

#  In itself, homosexuality is as limiting as…

![“In itself, homosexuality is as limiting as heterosexuality: the ideal should be to be capable of loving a woman or a man; either, a human being, without feeling fear, restraint, or obligation.” quote by Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b3e/simone-de-beauvoir-407_fear_in-itself-homosexuality-is-as-limiting-a_1374055.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b3e/simone-de-beauvoir-407_fear_in-itself-homosexuality-is-as-limiting-a_1374055.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b3e/simone-de-beauvoir-407_fear_in-itself-homosexuality-is-as-limiting-a_1374055.jpg)

> “In itself, homosexuality is as limiting as heterosexuality: the ideal should be to be capable of loving a woman or a man; either, a human being, without feeling fear, restraint, or obligation.”

[Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Love should be free of gender constraints, fear, or duty, allowing affection for any human being.

**In simple terms:** Love without gender limits or obligations.

Key Takeaway

Practice unconditional love.

Themes

equality love gender freedom humanity

Mood

thoughtful hopeful

Type

philosophical inspirational

When to use this quote

- relationships
- dating
- friendships
- social activism

Key Concepts

Feminist theory ethics human rights

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you define love?
- What barriers exist to loving freely?

A Different Perspective

Societal norms may resist such openness.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear/) [Heterosexuality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heterosexuality/) [Homosexuality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/homosexuality/) [Loving a woman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/loving-a-woman/)

## Related quotes

> [ Maybe \[Sodom and Gomorrah\] isn't really about homosexuality, but about rape. If the angels had been female, and the men of Sodom said they… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-sanchez/maybe-sodom-and-gomorrah-isn-t-really-about-homosexuality-but-about/)

[Alex Sanchez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-sanchez/)

> [I cannot believe homosexuality is that much fun. Heterosexuality certainly is not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/i-cannot-believe-homosexuality-is-that-much-fun-heterosexuality/)

[Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/)

> [It would have been convenient to be gay. Just because of the grooming, the narcissism, stuff like that. But I have this kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-brand/it-would-have-been-convenient-to-be-gay-just-because-of-the-grooming/)

[Russell Brand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-brand/)

> [The kind of loving women and men have in them and the ways it comes out from them makes for them the bottom nature…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-stein/the-kind-of-loving-women-and-men-have-in-them-and-the-ways-it-comes/)

[Gertrude Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-stein/)

> [I always just loved women, but more important than loving women, more important than sexual stuff, is I always believed in romance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-dice-clay/i-always-just-loved-women-but-more-important-than-loving-women-more/)

[Andrew Dice Clay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-dice-clay/)

> [All peace-loving women shut up when they sense they have stepped onto Guy Turf. Guy Turf is a murky realm of ego and pride…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanne-marie-laskas/all-peace-loving-women-shut-up-when-they-sense-they-have-stepped-onto/)

[Jeanne Marie Laskas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanne-marie-laskas/)

> [Yet once you've come to be part of this particular patch, you'll never love another. Like loving a woman with a broken nose, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-algren/yet-once-you-ve-come-to-be-part-of-this-particular-patch-you-ll-never/)

[Nelson Algren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-algren/)

> [The secret to The Temptations is the music: simple music about a man loving a woman. We talk about the lady when we need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-edwards/the-secret-to-the-temptations-is-the-music-simple-music-about-a-man/)

[Dennis Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-edwards/)

> [There is no pain compared to that of loving a woman who makes her body accessible to one and yet who is incapable of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-durrell/there-is-no-pain-compared-to-that-of-loving-a-woman-who-makes-her/)

[Lawrence Durrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-durrell/)

> [“Yet Katie held fast to the dream that perhaps there were men in the world who appreciated good women - men capable of loving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcia-lynn-mcclure/yet-katie-held-fast-to-the-dream-that-perhaps-there-were-men-in-the/)

[Marcia Lynn McClure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcia-lynn-mcclure/)

> [The deceit in loving a woman sometimes, is that most women fall in love with assumed personality, but eventually live with their true character.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/self/the-deceit-in-loving-a-woman-sometimes-is-that-most-women-fall-in/)

Self

> [Even so husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-the-apostle/even-so-husbands-should-love-their-wives-as-their-own-bodies-he-who/)

[Paul the Apostle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-the-apostle/)

> [One must choose between loving women and knowing them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ninon-de-l-enclos/one-must-choose-between-loving-women-and-knowing-them/)

[Ninon de L'Enclos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ninon-de-l-enclos/)

> [“What is madness...to go on platonically loving a woman who will never love you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-rard-de-nerval/what-is-madness-to-go-on-platonically-loving-a-woman-who-will-never/)

[Gérard de Nerval](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-rard-de-nerval/)

> [It is a well-established fact that in healthy loving women, uninjured by the too frequent lesions which result from childbirth, increasing physical satisfaction attaches…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-blackwell/it-is-a-well-established-fact-that-in-healthy-loving-women-uninjured/)

[Elizabeth Blackwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-blackwell/)

## More by Simone de Beauvoir

> [The time that one gains cannot be accumulated in a storehouse; it is contradictory to want to save up existence, which, the fact is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/the-time-that-one-gains-cannot-be-accumulated-in-a-storehouse-it-is/)

[Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/)

> [One is not born a genius, one becomes a genius; and the feminine situation has up to the present rendered this becoming practically impossible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/one-is-not-born-a-genius-one-becomes-a-genius-and-the-feminine/)

[Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/)

> [Many things would be changed for Americans if they would only admit that there is ill-luck in this world and that misfortune is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/many-things-would-be-changed-for-americans-if-they-would-only-admit/)

[Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/)

> [“You said something very true the other day: that for us, nudity begins with the face.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/you-said-something-very-true-the-other-day-that-for-us-nudity-begins/)

[Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/)

> [“Ženama se ne rađamo, nego postajemo”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/enama-se-ne-ra-amo-nego-postajemo/)

[Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/)

> [Life is occupied in both perpetuating itself and in surpassing itself; if all it does is maintain itself, then living is only not dying.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/life-is-occupied-in-both-perpetuating-itself-and-in-surpassing-itself/)

[Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/)

> [Fathers never have exactly the daughters they want because they invent a notion a them that the daughters have to conform to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/fathers-never-have-exactly-the-daughters-they-want-because-they/)

[Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/)

> [However gifted an individual is at the outset, if his or her talents cannot be developed because of his or her social condition, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/however-gifted-an-individual-is-at-the-outset-if-his-or-her-talents/)

[Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/)

> [In fact, people seem to be tired of fiction now. There are so many other ways of exploring humanity - by ethnology, psychoanalysis, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/in-fact-people-seem-to-be-tired-of-fiction-now-there-are-so-many/)

[Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/)

> [Feminism is one way of attacking society as it now exists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/feminism-is-one-way-of-attacking-society-as-it-now-exists/)

[Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/)

> [“Magari mi troverai ridicola, ma mi disprezzerei se non osassi esserlo mai”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/magari-mi-troverai-ridicola-ma-mi-disprezzerei-se-non-osassi-esserlo/)

[Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/)

> [from one minute to the next the present is merely an honorary past. It must be filled unceasingly anew to dissemble the curse it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/from-one-minute-to-the-next-the-present-is-merely-an-honorary-past-it/)

[Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/)

> [I am awfully greedy; I want everything from life. I want to be a woman and to be a man, to have many friends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/i-am-awfully-greedy-i-want-everything-from-life-i-want-to-be-a-woman/)

[Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/)

> [“I enjoyed my exhaustion, though; I liked overdoing things”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/i-enjoyed-my-exhaustion-though-i-liked-overdoing-things/)

[Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/)

> [“But I miss you to the point of anguish.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/but-i-miss-you-to-the-point-of-anguish/)

[Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/)

[Explore all 488 Simone de Beauvoir quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/)

## More Fear quotes

> [This may sound strange, but although I feel like I know everything about my characters, the brand of shampoo they use, how many cavities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-honeyman/this-may-sound-strange-but-although-i-feel-like-i-know-everything/)

[Gail Honeyman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-honeyman/)

> [“That horrible stinging sensation returned, the muscles behind my eyes straining as the first tear began to fall. “I’m scared, too. For eighteen months…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/devon-ashley/that-horrible-stinging-sensation-returned-the-muscles-behind-my-eyes/)

[Devon Ashley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/devon-ashley/)

> [“...Often that which most we fear births the resolve that spurs us on to altitudes we could not have achieved, had we continued walking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-t-anderson/often-that-which-most-we-fear-births-the-resolve-that-spurs-us-on-to/)

[M.T. Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-t-anderson/)

> [What an incredible drug fear is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/what-an-incredible-drug-fear-is/)

[Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/)

> [“Anything that you find yourself worrying about regularly may find you suddenly wanting unrealistic changes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nagisa-tatsumi/anything-that-you-find-yourself-worrying-about-regularly-may-find-you/)

Nagisa Tatsumi

> [“We all know how the thing we secretly fear is not a secret at all but the open and eternal thing that predicts its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/we-all-know-how-the-thing-we-secretly-fear-is-not-a-secret-at-all-but/)

[Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/)

> [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/)

[Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/)

> [“I had nowhere to go and did not wish to be seen by anyone for fear they would recognize my sadness and so for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-dewitt/i-had-nowhere-to-go-and-did-not-wish-to-be-seen-by-anyone-for-fear/)

[Patrick deWitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-dewitt/)

> [It's easier to change a law than an age-old mentality. Deep down, many prejudices, many hostilities, many fears persist. But if we take a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dacia-maraini/it-s-easier-to-change-a-law-than-an-age-old-mentality-deep-down-many/)

[Dacia Maraini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dacia-maraini/)

> [“Snip off the little worries and expressions of worry” like little branches atop a tall tree.28 If you are truly worried, sharing your concerns…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-sanders/snip-off-the-little-worries-and-expressions-of-worry-like-little/)

[Tim Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-sanders/)

> [“Fear and desire for pleasure. Aggressiveness comes out of fear, predominantly, and sexuality predominantly out of the other. But they mix in the middle.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-french/fear-and-desire-for-pleasure-aggressiveness-comes-out-of-fear/)

[Marilyn French](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-french/)

> [“Carrie Fisher. “Stay afraid, but do it anyway.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-union/carrie-fisher-stay-afraid-but-do-it-anyway/)

[Gabrielle Union](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-union/)

> [“Yes, the issue was courage. It always had been, even as a kid. Things scared him. He couldn't help it. Noise scared him, dark…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-brien/yes-the-issue-was-courage-it-always-had-been-even-as-a-kid-things/)

[Tim O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-brien/)

> [Don't be afraid of hard work. Nothing worthwhile comes easily. Don't let others discourage you or tell you that you can't do it. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-b-elion/don-t-be-afraid-of-hard-work-nothing-worthwhile-comes-easily-don-t/)

[Gertrude B. Elion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-b-elion/)

> [Let me tell you that atheism has never painted a masterpiece. Atheism has never dispelled fear. Atheism has never healed a disease; faith in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hagee/let-me-tell-you-that-atheism-has-never-painted-a-masterpiece-atheism/)

[John Hagee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hagee/)

[Browse all 35,569 Fear quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "In itself, homosexuality is as limiting as heterosexuality: the ideal should be to be capable of loving a woman or a man; either, a human being, without feeling fear, restraint, or obligation.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Simone de Beauvoir"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/in-itself-homosexuality-is-as-limiting-as-heterosexuality-the-ideal/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Fear"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/in-itself-homosexuality-is-as-limiting-as-heterosexuality-the-ideal/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b3e/simone-de-beauvoir-407_fear_in-itself-homosexuality-is-as-limiting-a_1374055.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b3e/simone-de-beauvoir-407_fear_in-itself-homosexuality-is-as-limiting-a_1374055.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b3e/simone-de-beauvoir-407_fear_in-itself-homosexuality-is-as-limiting-a_1374055.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“In itself, homosexuality is as limiting as heterosexuality: the ideal should be to be capable of loving a…” — Simone de Beauvoir",
                "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": "Simone de Beauvoir",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "In itself, homosexuality is as limiting...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/in-itself-homosexuality-is-as-limiting-as-heterosexuality-the-ideal/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/in-itself-homosexuality-is-as-limiting-as-heterosexuality-the-ideal/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
