Mary Beard's "Women and Power" is a thought-provoking exploration of the deep-rooted misogyny that has persisted throughout Western civilization, from ancient Greece and Rome to the present day. Drawing on her expertise as a classical scholar, Beard traces how our modern attitudes toward women in power and public discourse have been shaped by ideas and cultural norms dating back thousands of years.
The book grew out of two lectures Beard gave for the London Review of Books, and it reads as an engaging, accessible analysis of how women have been systematically excluded from positions of authority and silenced in public life. Beard's central argument is that our very concepts of power and public speaking have been defined in masculine terms since antiquity, making it extraordinarily difficult for women to be seen as legitimate leaders or authoritative voices.
While acknowledging progress in women's rights and representation, Beard contends that true equality will require fundamentally redefining our notions of power itself. She offers a compelling call to dismantle oppressive structures and create new models that don't exclude women by design. Though concise, "Women and Power" provides illuminating historical context for contemporary debates about gender and offers an inspiring vision for a more inclusive future.
The Classical Roots of Misogyny
Women in Power as Monstrous in Greek Mythology
Beard begins by examining how ancient Greek culture portrayed powerful women as unnatural and dangerous. Greek myths and dramas are filled with female characters who wield authority, but they are almost invariably depicted as monstrous hybrids or usurpers of male power whose rule ends in disaster.
A prime example is Clytemnestra in Aeschylus's play Agamemnon. When her husband King Agamemnon leaves to fight in the Trojan War, Clytemnestra is left to rule in his absence. But upon his return, she murders him in his bath. Aeschylus uses masculine language to describe her, calling her "androboulon" or "with manly purpose." The implication is clear - a woman who seeks power becomes unwomanly and perverted.
Even seemingly positive female figures like the goddess Athena are problematic. As the patron deity of Athens, Athena might appear to be an empowering symbol. But she was a virgin warrior goddess, completely removed from the traditional female role of bearing children. From the Greek perspective, Athena was hardly a woman at all.
These depictions reveal the deep cultural anxiety around women in positions of authority. The idea that women could successfully wield power was seen as absurd or deeply disturbing. Female rule was portrayed as a violation of the natural order that could only lead to chaos and ruin.
Silencing Women's Voices in Classical Literature
Beard then explores how classical literature systematically silenced and devalued women's speech. One of the earliest and most influential works of Western literature, Homer's Odyssey, provides a telling example. When Penelope asks a bard to sing a more cheerful song, her son Telemachus sharply rebukes her, saying "speech will be the business of men" and ordering her to return to her weaving.
This theme of silencing women's voices recurs throughout classical writings. In Aristophanes' comedy The Assemblywomen, the notion of women running Athens is ridiculed. The female characters are portrayed as incapable of adapting their speech to serious political discourse, instead constantly talking about sex.
Ovid's Metamorphoses features several female characters who are literally robbed of speech. Io is transformed into a cow by Jupiter, while Echo is cursed to only repeat the words of others. These myths reflect and reinforce the idea that it was unnatural for women to speak in public.
Oratory as an Exclusively Male Domain
A key insight Beard offers is that in the classical world, public speaking skills were seen as fundamentally male attributes. The ideal Roman citizen was described as a "vir bonus dicendi peritus" - a good man skilled in speaking. Male voices were associated with authority and courage, while female voices were linked to cowardice and even considered potentially harmful to the state.
The Greek word for authoritative public speech, "muthos," was implicitly contrasted with frivolous chatter or gossip - the only type of speech women were thought capable of. Because oratory was defined as an inherently masculine pursuit, a woman who spoke publicly was, by definition, transgressing gender norms.
This exclusion from public discourse both reflected and reinforced women's lack of political rights in classical society. Without the ability to vote or hold office, women had little incentive to develop rhetorical skills. But more fundamentally, the very nature of authoritative speech was conceptualized in male terms.
Limited Exceptions for Women's Speech
Beard notes that there were occasional exceptions where women's voices appeared in classical writings, but these only served to prove the rule. The Roman writer Valerius Maximus catalogued just three examples of women who spoke publicly in the forum - and he portrayed them as unnatural aberrations.
When women were allowed to speak at length, it was often as victims or martyrs. The story of Lucretia, who was raped by a prince, sometimes depicts her accusing her attacker before killing herself. But in Ovid's version, the princess Philomela has her tongue cut out by her rapist to prevent her from denouncing him.
The few examples of women speaking publicly were typically restricted to "women's issues" or used to elicit sympathy. They were not seen as authoritative voices on matters of general importance to society. This limited scope for women's speech remains frustratingly familiar today.
Enduring Barriers to Women's Voices
Modern Echoes of Classical Attitudes
Beard argues that while women's voices are heard more often in the public sphere today, they are still often treated as anomalies or exceptions that prove the rule. She points to the famous speech supposedly given by Queen Elizabeth I to her troops before the Spanish Armada invasion. Elizabeth allegedly declared that she had "the heart and stomach of a king" despite having "the body of a weak and feeble woman."
However, Beard notes that this speech was likely fabricated decades later. The invented words reveal the perceived need to explain away Elizabeth's authority by portraying her as quasi-male. Even when celebrating a powerful woman, the account relies on androgynous imagery.
Similarly, anthologies of great speeches often include a few token examples by women. But these are typically restricted to "women's issues" rather than covering the full range of human knowledge and experience. Some famous speeches attributed to women, like Sojourner Truth's "Ain't I a Woman?", turn out to be later embellishments that don't reflect how the women actually spoke.
These examples show how women's voices are still often cordoned off into limited categories. Any transgression from these norms continues to be seen as incongruous or requiring special explanation.
Ongoing Efforts to Silence Women
Beard provides several contemporary examples of women being silenced or having their authority undermined when they attempt to speak on important issues. In 2017, Senator Elizabeth Warren was prevented from reading a letter by Coretta Scott King on the Senate floor, while her male colleagues were later allowed to read the same letter without interruption.
Even when women have official platforms to speak, they often face exclusion or derision. In the British House of Commons, male MPs frequently heckle and shout over female MPs during debates. In Afghanistan's parliament, women's microphones are sometimes unplugged by male counterparts.
Beard notes that it's often not the content of women's speech that provokes backlash, but the very fact that they are speaking at all in domains traditionally reserved for men. She shares her own experiences of being viciously attacked online whenever she appears on radio or television. The abuse often takes gendered forms aimed at silencing women, like threats to cut out their tongues - echoing the violent imagery from classical myths.
Another common experience for women is having their contributions to discussions ignored or attributed to men. Beard references a cartoon depicting a boardroom scene where the chair says, "That's an excellent suggestion, Miss Triggs. Perhaps one of the men here would like to make it." This erasure of women's voices remains frustratingly prevalent.
Lack of Models for Female Authority
A key issue Beard identifies is the lack of culturally recognized templates for what a powerful woman looks like or sounds like. Our default image of authority figures - whether presidents, professors, or business leaders - remains stubbornly male. Even as more women enter positions of power, they often have to conform to masculine models to be taken seriously.
Beard notes how female politicians like Angela Merkel and Hillary Clinton favor pantsuits, which make them resemble the paradigm of the powerful man in a suit. Margaret Thatcher famously took vocal lessons to lower her voice and sound more authoritative. Women in power must navigate structures and expectations that were designed to exclude them.
This lack of feminine models for authority becomes self-reinforcing. Beard shares how even she, as a renowned female professor, sometimes defaults to using "he" when imagining generic authority figures. Our cultural imagination struggles to envision female power that isn't somehow masculinized.
Redefining Power Itself
Moving Beyond Traditional Power Structures
Given how deeply ingrained masculine models of authority are, Beard argues that true equality will require fundamentally redefining our concept of power itself. She cautions against focusing solely on getting more women into existing power structures, as these structures are inherently exclusionary by design.
Instead, Beard advocates expanding our notion of what constitutes power and influence. She notes that prestigious titles or positions don't always equate to real power - for instance, Saudi Arabia and Rwanda have higher percentages of women in their legislatures than Western democracies, but this doesn't necessarily translate to societal equality.
Rather than seeing power as something to be possessed or wielded like a weapon, Beard suggests conceptualizing it more as an attribute or a verb. Power could be understood as the ability to effect change and be taken seriously, rather than as occupying a particular office or role.
Emphasizing Collaboration and Efficacy
This redefinition opens up space to recognize collaborative efforts and grassroots movements as powerful, even if they lack traditional figureheads. Beard points to the founders of the Black Lives Matter movement as an example - while not household names, their impact and efficacy demonstrate a form of power.
Shifting to this more expansive understanding creates room for both leaders and followers to be considered powerful in their own ways. It moves away from the zero-sum, competitive model of power that has historically excluded women and minorities.
Beard argues that by blowing apart calcified notions of authority and influence, we can create new structures that don't implicitly code power as male. This provides a path forward for promoting women's voices and leadership that goes beyond just trying to fit women into systems designed for their exclusion.
Conclusion
Mary Beard's "Women and Power" offers a bracing analysis of the classical roots of misogyny and women's exclusion from public life. By tracing how our concepts of authority and speech have been defined in masculine terms since antiquity, she illuminates the scale of the challenge in achieving true gender equality.
However, the book is ultimately hopeful in its call for radically reimagining power itself. Beard argues convincingly that by expanding our understanding of influence and efficacy beyond traditional hierarchies, we can create more inclusive models that don't structurally disadvantage women and other marginalized groups.
While concise, "Women and Power" provides crucial historical context for contemporary debates around gender and authority. It challenges readers to examine their own internalized assumptions and to envision new paradigms of power that create space for diverse voices and collaborative leadership.
Beard's insights on the silencing of women throughout history shed light on the hostility and backlash that female public figures still face today. But she also offers an inspiring path forward, calling on both women and men to dismantle oppressive structures and promote a more equitable conception of power and public discourse.
By connecting ancient attitudes to modern prejudices, "Women and Power" demonstrates the persistence of misogyny while also revealing its contingent, constructed nature. This in turn highlights the possibility of change. Beard's work stands as both a clear-eyed diagnosis of deeply rooted problems and an empowering manifesto for creating a more just and inclusive society.
Key Takeaways
Our modern attitudes toward women in power have deep roots in classical Greek and Roman culture, where female rule was portrayed as unnatural and disastrous.
Public speaking and oratory were defined as inherently masculine pursuits in the ancient world, making it difficult for women's voices to be taken seriously.
When women were allowed to speak publicly in classical times, it was typically only as victims/martyrs or on narrowly defined "women's issues."
These classical attitudes continue to shape our concepts of authority and public discourse, creating ongoing barriers for women's voices.
Women in positions of power often have to adopt masculine styles of dress and speech to be taken seriously, due to a lack of feminine models of authority.
True equality will require fundamentally redefining our concept of power beyond traditional hierarchies and competitive models.
Beard advocates understanding power more as an attribute or ability to effect change, rather than as something to be possessed or wielded.
Creating new, more inclusive power structures can open up space for diverse voices and collaborative forms of leadership.
Examining the historical roots of misogyny reveals how cultural attitudes are constructed and therefore can be changed.
Both women and men have a role to play in dismantling oppressive systems and promoting more equitable conceptions of authority and public discourse.
Actionable Advice
Be aware of your own internalized biases about what authority looks like. Challenge yourself to envision diverse models of leadership.
Pay attention to whose voices are being heard and taken seriously in various contexts. Make an effort to amplify marginalized perspectives.
When in positions of power or influence, create space for collaborative decision-making rather than top-down pronouncements.
Examine the structures and cultures of organizations you're part of. Look for ways they may implicitly exclude or disadvantage certain groups.
Practice active listening, especially to those with different lived experiences than your own. Resist the urge to immediately explain or debate.
Be mindful of gendered language and how it can reinforce stereotypes about authority and competence.
Support and mentor women and other underrepresented groups in developing public speaking skills and confidence.
When you witness someone being talked over or having their ideas dismissed, speak up to redirect attention back to them.
Look for opportunities to reframe discussions of power in terms of efficacy and ability to create positive change, rather than domination.
Educate yourself on the historical and cultural factors shaping gender dynamics in your society. Understanding the roots of inequality is key to addressing it.
By implementing these practices in our daily lives and institutions, we can begin to shift deeply ingrained attitudes and create more equitable power structures. While the challenge is significant, Beard's work reminds us that cultural norms are not fixed and that meaningful change is possible through sustained effort and awareness.