Famous people complain about fame, but they never want to give it back, myself included.

— Erica Jong

...filled her memory bank with shiny coins.

— Erica Jong

Generations of women have sacrificed their lives to become their mothers. But we do not have that luxury anymore. The world has changed too much to let us have the lives our mothers had. And we can no longer afford the guilt we feel at not being our mothers. We cannot afford any guilt that pulls us back to the past. We have to grow up, whether we want to or not. Furthermore, we have to stop blaming men and mothers and seize every second of our lives with passion. Furthermore, we can no longer afford to waste our creativity. Furthermore, we cannot afford spiritual laziness.

— Erica Jong

How did I get to be a grown-up? At times, I find myself still sitting on the hillside, plotting revenge against the adult world.

— Erica Jong

Husband and wife have no time left to spend together. Marriage took away our one reason for getting married.

— Erica Jong

I don't believe what you believe," I yelled, "and I don't respect your beliefs and I don't respect you for holding them. If you can honestly make a statement like that about the power behind the throne, how can you possibly understand anything about me or the things I'm struggling with? I don't want to live by the things you live by, I don't want that kind of life and I don't see why I should be judged by its standards.

— Erica Jong

If every day I dare to remember that I am here on loan that this house this hillside these minutes are all leased to me not given I will never despair.

— Erica Jong

I guess the thing that I'm most proud of is that I kept on writing poetry. I understand that poetry is sort of the source of everything I do. It's the source of my creativity.

— Erica Jong

I had forgotten how awful it was to be a woman alone--the leering glances, the catcalls, the offers of help which you dared not accept for fear of incurring a sexual debt. The awful sense of vulnerability. No wonder I had gone from man to man and always wound up married. How could I have left Bennett? How could I have forgotten?

— Erica Jong

I have accepted fear as a part of life -specifically the fear of change ... I have gone ahead despite the pounding in the heart that says: turn back. ...

— Erica Jong