Who holds power ?

Mary Beard has written this short book, which is the result of a couple of lectures she gave. Women and Power is about the history of women in power and how women have been marginalised and ignored over the years, and the compromises that they have had to make in order to be able to achieve equality. She also gives examples of how women have not yet achieved equality in access to power. As a woman myself, and one who has an interest in history, I found none of this surprising but, when presented in one place and linked with a reasoned argument, it is compelling and concerning reading.

The author starts with women’s exclusion in classical times and shows how different standards have always been applied to women in the public eye and then she brings it up to date with modern examples, including the horrific abuse that these women often endure today based on their appearance, the way they dress and even the way that they speak. Her argument is that women have been excluded from the structures of power in our society, she is talking primarily about Britain and Western democracies, and that those structures have been created and maintained to continue that exclusion.

This book is very quick and easy to read and it is full of thought-provoking examples and arguments. The author presents it as a manifesto for change but, obviously, as men hold the power it is them who will have to make those changes – it is not just attitudes that need to change but our structures too.

This is fascinating stuff which really needs to be read and taken on board by those who hold power in our society. It was one of my non-fiction books of the year for 2025 – see here