International Women's Day 2011

To mark International Women's Day, I decided to just make a simple post of acknowledgement to some women from history - whose lives or work have been inspirational to me.  I would have liked to have written a more up to date article on contemporary social issues, globally, for women..... but I acknowledge that post treatment brain fog is still too cloudy for me to focus enough on that.. Many thanks to all the women out there who are working locally, nationally and internationally to improve the lives of women.

I have another blog - more devoted to creative, random and various eclectic themes. I decided to post this on this blog - focusing on healing and choices for creative living - to reflect the concept of healinbg women's lives. Which of course is also about healing men's lives ......

I have added a link, for more intro background on each women..... of course, there will be much more out there should you get more curious...

MY LIST OF WOMEN FROM HISTORY 

 (sorry, not too keen on the word herstory but substitute it mentally if you wish of course!)  Apologies for a fairly Euro-Centric emphasis here - but this list is my personal list and tends to be what I am more familiar with, having grown up here, however I have attempted to at least acknowledge this and extend into other continents to some extent.... 

1. Lilith   Was she really a dreadful demon - or just a bold, free-spirited and independent woman!?

http://www.lilitu.com/lilith/

2. Hypatia.  Lived in Alexandria in around 350BC.  Eminent and brilliant mathetmatician and scholar of philosophy, languages and astronomy.  Formulated several significant mathematical theories, taught students in theories of Plato and Aristolte, influended many other contemporary scholars including Socrates who respected her intellect highly.  My take - most have been a determined woman, to achieve so much in a very male intellectual environment.  Hypatia was respected by many of the lead figures in the growing early Christian communities at the time, though herself a pagan. However - due to a personality and ego clash among factions (actually more so than any religious differences) she was brutally attacked in the street - in her 60's - stripped and beaten and stoned to death.   If there was such a thing as a pagan saint and martyr then - do we nominate her as one?

http://cosmopolis.com/people/hypatia.html

3)  Sappho - yes, Ancient Greece once again, and I chose her for the clarity and elegance and flow of her poetry and the freedom of her love for others and powerful sensual relationship with her own body and the natural world.  (yeah, she was bi-sexual - so what?)

http://www.temple.edu/classics/sappho/index.html

4) Judith.  The Bible stories about her appear to have at least some historical basis.   A leader, Judge, Prophet and Military General - she lead troops into battle and was respected for her wisdom in civil matters.

http://community.history.com/topic/7091

5). Cleopatra.  At first take - this might seem a really obvious choice and easily by-passed.  However, I chose her because she was I think an excellent stateswoman, strategist and politician... As is so often the case, with powerful women,  the immediate impression we have of her, or often portrayed, is based on her feminine life - her lovers, sexuality and marriage, childbirth etc.  However she ruled - and very well - an extraordinally powerful and wealthy country, managed many factions and a great deal of treachery (including murderous members of her own family) and helped unite Old and New Egypt.....

http://www.royalty.nu/Africa/Egypt/Cleopatra.html

6) Boudicca. Queen of the Iceni, who lead her tribe in ancient Britain in resisting the Roman brtually here at that time.  Some of the speeches she gave, of which there is sparse records, seem to have been very stirring... She described herself not only as a Queen prtecting the wealth, territory and interests of her people, but as  (to paraphrase in contemporary English) " an ordinary woman who would fight for her freedom, family and rights - and if the men want to be slaves to the Romans, that's their choice, but I shall not!"

http://www.culture24.org.uk/history+%26+heritage/war+%26+conflict/pre-20th+century+conflict/tra22669

7) Hilda of Whitby.  An Abbess and Christian saint - but actually a stateswoman, diplomat and politician.  Consulted by kings, lords and the Great Important Leaders of the time for her common sense, learning and solution driven approach.  (She presided over several abbeys, including Whitby which was the venue for the very important Synod of Whitby in 7th Century - a sort of bridge building between Celtic and Roman church... )

http://www.women-philosophers.com/Hilda-of-Whitby.html

8) Christine de Pisan.  14th Century - Venezian but spent most of her life in France.   Kown as first woman definitely documented in Europe, to have made her living as a writer.  After the death of her husband - she supported herself and her children in this way.  Emminent and respected teacher and scholar, and respected at court and amongst nobility at time.

http://xenophongroup.com/montjoie/pizan.htm

9)  Artemesia Gentileschi,  Renaissance painter.  I like her for the power and skill of her paintings and for who she was.  Firstly - again, damned hard work, I would imagine, to gain recognition in the male art world at the time.  However she also boldly spoke out publicly against rape.  This really was extraordinary...   she had been raped at a young age (late teens) and instead of agreeing to be the culprit and silenced, and quietly married off to the man - went to court and spoke out, thus inviting huge stigma upon herself.  Some contemporary historians, in critiquing her work, have observed that there appears to be a frequent theme of anger or aggression towards men.  (With the implication this indicates a problem or weakness)   It seems to me entirely appropriate that such a gifted woman, with such a tragic event in early years approaching adulthood, should express this in her art.  I do hope these (yes, mostly male) historians are equally interested in some of the sadist images of women portrayed by males in the name  of art?  (The Rape of the Sabine Women or The Rape of Europa for example were favourite images for males artists for years through classical times - very exciting I am sure?)

http://www.arthistoryarchive.com/arthistory/baroque/Artemisia-Gentileschi.html

10 ) Amina, Queen of Zazzau (now part of Nigeria) 5th - 6th century.  Muslim Queen and Military leader  (yeah, I do like these warrior queens) - a fierce and skilled fighter, and like our Lizzy 1, refused to marry, placing her rule and government first.  (In the Islam tradition by this time, her power would have been perhaps even more diminished than would Elizabeth's, had she married...   debately of course.)

http://www.blackpresence.co.uk/2010/01/queen-amina-queen-of-zaria/

11) Queen Elizabeth 1st.  I thought hard about whether to include her - in a way doesn't deserve to be NOT on my list!! But like Cleopatra - she is too often associated with the legends and romantic tales around the biology and sexuality of womanhood : yeah maybe she was a virgin or maybe not - I would imagine not - but again  so what!?  More to the point she was clever enough to not hand over her power into matrimony and to even make a wonderful legend of that, stating that she was married to England.  (By the way - if I was her, having a father like Henry - I wouldn't have been too keen on the idea of marriage for personal as well as political reasons,  either. ) So - aside from all of that: she was a highly intelligent and well-educated woman, gifted in languages, ruled directly and was very astute in doing so. (Implies no comment on the morality of any of her decisions.)

 http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/tudors/elizabeth_i_01.shtml

12)) Aphra Benn - English renaissance playwright, very successful in her time, witty and adventurous tales, with strong women and maverick men.  Charles 2 requested a private viewing of one of her plays and she earned good money.  (Sometimes recognised as first recorded Englishwoman to make a living from writing.) 

 http://www.luminarium.org/eightlit/behn/

next post I will keep moving forward through time and mention a few more heroines....   please comment if you want. anyone on this list who resonates for you?  or others?  but NOT yet beyond late 1600's - that's as far as we've got chronologically.  .....   or: who are the women in your personal life who have inspired you?

with love and wishing you good journeying.  eva day.  xx

HERE IS A LINK FOR INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY - 8TH MARCH.  http://www.internationalwomensday.com/   (celebrating it's centenary this year.)