“Bitch, on that world, was what men called women they were extremely fond of or extremely displeased with when the woman was not there.”

“...it was another year or two before I discovered that drat and draft were different words. During that same period I remember believing that details were dentals and that a bitch was an extremely tall woman. A son of a bitch was apt to be a basketball player. When you're six, most of your Bingo balls are still floating around in the draw-tank" (27-8).”

“Because we are the only women who are mothers of men." Gorgo: when asked by a woman from Attica why Spartan women were the only women in the world who could rule men.”

“His expression was suddenly serious as the tip of his finger traced her lips. “I never understood why history is filled with stories of men who waged wars over a woman they loved. There are many women in the world, and it was beyond my grasp what made one woman special enough to go to such extremes.” He pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Now I understand.”

“If female sexuality is muted compared to that of men, then why must men the world over go to extreme lengths to control and contain it?”

“...often referred to herself as a bitch. It was a way of insulting herself and asserting herself simultaneously. She acted like a bitch when she was threatened. It was the only effective self-defense she had learned. The more frightened ... felt, the harder she lashed out. It was her offense and her defense.  ...the bitch was also ... the poet. She was a very sensitively constructed sending and receiving mechanism, extremely vulnerable and extremely wary.”