In celebration of Women’s History Month, we recommend Women and Power by Mary Beard, a Cambridge Professor of Classics. This “Manifesto” is a short volume – only 115 pages – and is based on two lectures, the first given in 2014 and the second in 2017.
Beard opens her book by recounting a scene at the beginning of the Odyssey, when Penelope is told to be quiet by her son, who states, “speech will be the business of men, all men, and of me most of all; for mine is the power in this household.” And with that, Beard starts to unpack the long story of women’s voice in the public sphere and power, and connects it to the same issues we are grappling with today.
Beard is the author of numerous books and articles, including SPQR: A History of Ancient Rome. She is a Fellow of the British Academy and a contributor to both radio and television.
Find reviews of Women & Power and interviews with the author below:
- Long, KR. (Dec 17, 2017). Mary Beard discusses her timely new manifesto, ‘Women and Power.’ Newsday.
- Rome would have been ghastly for a woman without a fortune. (Jan 5, 2018). New Statesman.
- Rose, J. (Nov 22, 2017). Women and Power: A Manifesto by Mary Beard. The Guardian.
- Sehgal, P (Dec 5, 2017). From Ancient Myths to Modern Day, Women and the Struggle for Power. The New York Times.
You can find Women & Power by Mary Beard in the John T. Richardson Library’s Haber Lounge, Call Number: 305.42 B3684W2017
Come in and check us out!