The Ladies, The Loudmouths, and The Long Game of Power
Mary Beard's “Women and Power” explores how women's voices have been historically silenced. From Greek myth to modern politics, women in power are considered monstrous or must adopt masculine traits.
“A woman speaking in public is a woman who has dared to defy.”
That's the word on the street according to Mary Beard, Cambridge professor, famed Classicist, and slayer of online trolls, in her new essay, Women and Power. And if those opening lines sound familiar, Beard assures us that's no coincidence. It's a subtle dig, you see. A jab at the enduring, unspoken rules society still tries to foist upon women who refuse to be silent.
This essay isn't your standard rallying cry about smashing the glass ceiling (though we'll get to that). Instead, Beard takes us on a romp through history and hits the frontlines of current events. Her goal? To expose how our very notions of power remain intrinsically tied to a masculine perspective – and it's not just about the seats of government.
