"To be a bitch or not to be a bitch, that is the question"
About this Quote
The joke is doing double duty. On the surface, it’s a punchy, self-aware one-liner; underneath, it’s a commentary on how celebrity culture (and workplace culture more broadly) polices women’s tone. Men get to be “intense,” “complicated,” “a perfectionist.” Women get a single, blunt noun that erases motive and context. By framing the choice as a dramatic dilemma, Doherty exposes the trap: you’re either “nice” in a way that keeps you safe and employable, or you assert boundaries and get branded.
The phrasing also winks at Doherty’s own media history. She’s long been cast as the “difficult” actress, a label that often functions as shorthand for “wouldn’t play along.” Quoting Hamlet turns that scarlet letter into a prop she controls. The subtext isn’t “I am a bitch.” It’s “I know the script you’ve written for me, and I can recite it better than you can.”
Quote Details
| Topic | Witty One-Liners |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Doherty, Shannen. (2026, January 17). To be a bitch or not to be a bitch, that is the question. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/to-be-a-bitch-or-not-to-be-a-bitch-that-is-the-77332/
Chicago Style
Doherty, Shannen. "To be a bitch or not to be a bitch, that is the question." FixQuotes. January 17, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/to-be-a-bitch-or-not-to-be-a-bitch-that-is-the-77332/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"To be a bitch or not to be a bitch, that is the question." FixQuotes, 17 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/to-be-a-bitch-or-not-to-be-a-bitch-that-is-the-77332/. Accessed 12 Feb. 2026.









