Asking For It
Quotes from the Book
We are who we are. Sometimes, no matter how much someone might want to, they can’t escape that.
I want to hide, fold into the shadows and become invisible so no-one can look at me any more.
We have never had a class on how to say no to men while simultaneously never saying no to them.
For now they are just girls who are making the wrong choices. They’re ‘whores’. But what if they don’t realize that they’re making the wrong choices? What if the path they are on just has different signposts to ours?
Why, isabel? Why are you doing this to yourself? To your body?' And why are you doing this to me? is the awful, selfish thought that is left unsaid. 'Because I can,' she answers, and I shiver as she unconsciously echoes chastity-ruth. 'But-' 'Because it's my body,' she cuts in. 'Isn't it?
She's beautiful, but it's a faded beauty now, as if she's been washed too many times.
I dream of things I know nothing about.
She catches sight of herself in her video-feed, her face contorted with fury. Wiping spittle from the sides of her mouth, she reaches behind her to grab her lip gloss and reapplies it. “And don’t even start thinking about what a bitch I am,” she says. Her eyes are steady, the heat receding from her skin. “This is not my fault. I’m just doing what we have been trained to do. This is who we are, freida. This is who we were designed to be.
All eves are created to be perfect but, over time, they seem to develop flaws. Comparing yourself to your sisters is a useful way of identifying these flaws, but you must then take the necessary steps to improve yourself. There is always room for Improvement.
I'm a good girl. I am pretty. I am always happy-go-lucky.
I can't even remember the first time I saw a porno. I presume I must have been shocked, frightened even, but after watching another and another and another they sort of blend into nothingness.
It’s true, I am skinny. My bones jostle underneath my skin, fighting to be the first one to pierce my flesh.
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About Louise O'Neill
More by Louise O'Neill
Asking For It
The Surface Breaks
Book details
- Author
- Louise O'Neill
- Genre
- Fiction
- Goodreads rating
- 3.76 (18k ratings) →
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