How we cite our quotes: All quotations are from Gigi.
Quote #1
HONORÉ: Profession? Lover and collector of beautiful things. Not antiques, mind you. Younger things.
What's the salary for a job like that? Seriously, Honoré really does think of women as beautiful objects. This line was played for humor in 1958. Would it fly today? Check out the 2015 Broadway production of Gigi and see. Spoiler alert: The song "Thank Heaven for Little Girls" was given to Mamita and Alicia.
Quote #2
HONORÉ: There are some in Paris who will not marry and some who do not marry. But here in Paris, those who will not are usually men; and those who do not are usually women.
Honoré lets us know from the get-go what the gender politics are in his world. What's love got to do with it in a world where women need to attach themselves to a wealthy man to have any shot at a decent life? Even knowing he'll probably move on the the next woman at some point? It doesn't seem fair that society was set up so that many women wouldn't ever marry, then they were seen as gold-diggers who wanted nothing more than to force a man into marriage.
Quote #3
AUNT ALICIA: Without the knowledge of jewelry, a woman is lost.
This was considered the kind of critical thinking that women should acquire. Without a diamond, how do you know how much your boyfriend loves you? It's never mentioned in the film, but we assume that Gigi's education (from school, not Aunt Alicia) ended when she married Gaston. We see her in school clothes early on, but once she starts her other education from Alicia, that's the last we hear about Latin class or any other class.