harridan ˈher-ə-dən , ˈha-rə- noun
: a scolding (even vicious) old woman
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The word harridan has appeared in five articles on NYTimes.com in the past year, including on July 30 in “They’re Mad as Hell” by Ruth La Ferla:
Still, for a generation brought up to smile in the face of almost any affront or risk being tarred as a harridan, older women’s indignation seems ripe for reassessment. Small wonder, then, that with careers, social constraints and family obligations mostly behind them, some have seen fit to go rogue.
“What’s being loosed,” Ms. Tunney said, “is the tendency to let her rip.”
No need to remind Karla Wright, 76, a retired lawyer living in Greece, “When I was younger, I needed people to like me even though I didn’t particularly like them,” Ms. Wright recalled in an interview. “Now if they like me or not, who gives a damn?”
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