Google Doodle honours feminist writer Simone de Beauvoir

TORONTO – If Simone de Beauvoir were around to celebrate her 106th birthday, she would almost certainly be proud of the lives of women today.

The French writer and existentialist, best known for her feminist work titled The Second Sex, was celebrated by Google Thursday with a Doodle commemorating her 106th birthday.

Born in Paris in 1908, de Beauvoir studied philosophy at the Sorbonne and attended Paris’ elite school École Normale.

The Second Sex, published in 1949, details the treatment of women throughout history and is known as one of the founding works of modern feminism.

The writer also published fictional novels including She Came to Stay and The Blood of Others.

She was a leader of the existentialist movement along with her lifelong partner Jean-Paul Sartre. The two never married because de Beauvoir believed their relationship should not be defined by an institution. She believed not marrying or having kids would allow her to focus on her studies and writing.

De Beauvoir was quoted as saying, “I am too intelligent, too demanding, and too resourceful for anyone to be able to take charge of me entirely. No one knows me or loves me completely. I have only myself.”

De Beauvoir died at age 78. She is buried beside Sartre in the Cimetière du Montparnasse in Paris.

Key quotes from Simone de Beauvoir 

“One is not born, but rather becomes, a woman.”

“If you live long enough, you’ll see that every victory turns into a defeat.”

“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.”

“Self-knowledge is no guarantee of happiness, but it is on the side of happiness and can supply the courage to fight for it.”