Behind Every Great Man: The Hidden Histories of Women.
'Behind every great man, there's a great woman' goes the phrase, adopted as a slogan by some feminists in the Women's Liberation Movement of the 1960s and 1970s, in recognition of the fact that women have often been denied just that: recognition. While feminism has moved on since the days of 'Second Wave' feminists in the '60s, women still undeniably find their achievements overshadowed today, and face barriers to equality.
But does the slogan hold up? Looking back through European history, the answer appears to be yes.
While many of us, classical music fans or otherwise, will be familiar with the name of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, far fewer would likely be able to recall the name of his sister, Maria Anna. Of course, Mozart is not simply remembered for being a man, but for his talent and success, so perhaps it could be claimed that this was simply meritocracy at work (not that 18th century Europe was known for being one of those!). Yet Maria Anna Mozart, born 1751, was herself a pianist, as a young child called a "prodigy" and a "genius", just as her brother would be a few years later, as he began to establish his position in the halls of the greats. Some historians have suggested she may have influenced or contributed to his compositions, and although the truth of that is most likely lost to history, one can surely imagine that her prowess pushed him in his practice. Even more plausibly, her presence likely encouraged their father, Leopold, to take the two prodigies touring the European courts, giving Wolfgang the chance to kickstart his fame. However, the same would not be true for Maria Anna, as 18th century society offered little chance for women to choose a career over a marriage, and when she was 18 her father stopped taking Maria Anna on their tours, expecting her to settle down in matrimony. Even then, she kept composing, leaving us to wonder what she might have created with the support of a world in which a woman's talent could be more than simply an accomplishment to improve one's chances on the marriage market.
Unfortunately, the devaluing of women's achievement is not a problem that can be consigned to a critique of the 18th century matrimony market. A far clearer example arises in the century that gave us feminism as we know it: the 20th. While the discovery of the structure of DNA, one of the most notable scientific advancements in modern history, is often credited to the snappily-named duo Watson and Crick, but they were not alone in their work. Along with Maurice Wilkins, another crucial contributor was Rosalind Franklin, graduate of Newnham College, Cambridge, one of the university's women only-colleges. Franklin, who had previously worked for the British Coal Utilization Research Association, and earnt a PhD in physical chemistry, undertook vital research that led Watson and Crick to the 'lightbulb' moment which earnt them their fame. While working on the DNA question, Watson was shown one of Franklin's photographs, at the sight of which the solution fell into place. Franklin's work was given a supporting credit, but in Watson's account The Double Helix (1968), he takes a belittling attitude to her, referring to her as Wilkins' "assistant" and calling her "Rosy", admitting that they did so only behind her back. These simple, subtle denouncements of women's achievements run through history, leaving a trail of names remembered only when 'women's history' is the topic, as if women have not contributed to the world of men, but only their own, insular version of the past.
While the call for 'women in STEM' may be one heard often in schools today, a legacy still resounds of a time when women's accomplishments were expected to fit neatly into the boxes of patriarchal stereotypes. Hedy Lamarr, born 1914, is rightly well known for her acting career, starring in films such as Algiers (1938) and Samson and Delilah (1949), through which she earned a reputation for her talent, and for her remarkable beauty. However, she did not confine her achievements to the arts; she was a scientist too, an inventor whose ideas led us to the creation of GPS and WiFi, and assisted in the development of radio-controlled torpedoes for the US Navy. Whatever your thoughts on the value of undetectable torpedoes, it is undeniable that, like many other female scientists, Lamarr did not earn the credit she deserved for her innovation, with the patents for her torpedo designs given to the Navy, who never utilised them. Instead, she has gone down in history with a halved legacy, held up as an Old Hollywood beauty, her contributions to the film industry revered, yet her scientific contributions neglected in favour of what is perhaps a tidier narrative for the patriarchy. Women are allowed to be beautiful and charismatic, but they cannot also be intelligent, innovative, and contribute to the pursuits reserved to masculinity. This limiting attitude can only harm, where different fields are assigned a gender, all of society loses out on the ideas and creativity suppressed by the desire to fit people and their talents into a simple box or hierarchy.
Therefore, the next time you read about the 'greats' or the 'geniuses' in any field of history, take a look at how many women rank among them. What is it that gets people into those categories? Talent and true genius? Perhaps, whatever that truly is, but also a large amount of luck and privilege, two things overwhelmingly withheld from women throughout history. Why is it that most of the women who we do know about, like Mozart, Franklin and Lamarr, however obscured parts of their legacies may be, are white, western, and comparatively wealthy? The answer lies in the privileges that allow genius to become recognition, and in that recognition of genius, write the history books that give us our heroes.
Further Reading Links:
Maria Anna Mozart: The Family's First Prodigy - Smithsonian Magazine
Rosalind Elsie Franklin: Pioneer Molecular Biology - Science Women
Rosalind Franklin: A Crucial Contribution - Scitable
FORGOTTEN WOMEN IN STEM: HEDY LAMARR - Science + Media Museum
This piece was written by student writer, Anna
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