The Cost of Living: A Working Autobiography

“When our father does the things he needs to do in the world, we understand it is his due. If our mother does the things she needs to do in the world, we feel she had abandoned us. It is a miracle she survives our mixed messages, written in society's most poisoned ink. It is enough to drive her mad.”

WomenMothersMale Privilege

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“Truth is not always the most entertaining guest at the dinner table, and anyway, as Duras suggests, we are always more unreal to ourselves than other people are.”

PeopleCharacterTruthIdentitySelf AwarenessPerson

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“Life falls apart. We try to get a grip and hold it together. And then we realize we don't want to hold it together.”

Life And Living

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“Sometimes we want to unbelong as much as we want to belong.”

LonelinessBelonging

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“It was a big release from the terror of death to finally acknowledge that it is also always absurd.”

LifeDeathGrief

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“When our father does the things he needs to do in the world, we understand it is his due. If our mother does the things she needs to do in the world, we feel she has abandoned us. It is a miracle she survives our mixed messages, written in society's most poisoned ink. It is enough to drive her mad.”

WomenMothers

Book:The Cost of Living: A Working Autobiography

Source: The Cost of Living: A Working Autobiography

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“To strip the wallpaper off the fairy tale of The Family House in which the comfort and happiness of men and children have been the priority is to find behind it an unthanked, unloved, neglected, exhausted woman. It requires skill, time, dedication and empathy to create a home that everyone enjoys and that functions well. Above all else, it is an act of immense generosity to be the architect of everyone else's well-being. This task is still mostly perceived as women's work. Consequently, there are all kinds of words used to belittle this huge endeavour.”

WomenFamilySacrificeMothersHouseworkHousekeepingFamily Dynamics

Book:The Cost of Living: A Working Autobiography

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“Cuando una mujer tiene que encontrar una forma nueva de vivir y rompe con la historia social que ha borrado su nombre, se espera que se odie a sí misma atrozmente, que enloquezca de dolor, que llore arrepentida. Son las joyas reservadas para ella en la corona del patriarcado, siempre a su disposición. No faltan las lágrimas, pero es mejor atravesar la oscuridad negra y azulada que quedarse con esas joyas que nada valen”

Feminism

Book:The Cost of Living: A Working Autobiography

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“Orwell, in his 1936 essay "Shooting an elephant", noted that an imperialist 'wears a mask, and his face grows to fit it'. The wife also wears a mask and her face grows to fit it, in all its variations.”

WifePatriarchyMasksImperialist

Book:The Cost of Living: A Working Autobiography

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“I will never stop grieving for my long-held wish for enduring love that does not reduce its major players to something less than they are.”

Marriage

Book:The Cost of Living: A Working Autobiography

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