G!RL POWER: 5 Powerful Women in History

March is Women’s History Month in most English-speaking countries. Thanks to the Internet and social media, more and more people take part in celebrating women during this month every year. It provides an excellent opportunity to learn about female authors, scientists, inventors, artists, creators, and many more.

You will find a glossary of 28 words below the article.

Jane Austen

author

Jane Austen by Evert Duykinck, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

You have probably read or seen Pride and Prejudice. At the very least you have heard about it. The story of the stubborn Ms Elizabeth Bennet and the aloof Mr Darcy has captivated1 audiences since its publication in 1813.

Austen was born in 1775 in Steventon, England. She had seven siblings2, six brothers and one sister. Their father was a teacher, and their mother was a witty3, well-read woman, and both parents passionately encouraged their children to learn. 

Austen made a significant contribution4 to the novel as we know it in its modern form: she could make the stories of ordinary characters in ordinary situations extraordinary. She possessed5 a timeless charm, fantastic humour and a lot of sympathy for her characters. Critics and readers alike are still fascinated by the careful construction6 of her texts, the skilful language, and the subtle7 and funny social commentary. 

Despite her talent and achievements, she published her novels anonymously8, as did many female authors at the time as writing was thought to be an inappropriate occupation for women.

If you are interested in learning more, I recommend watching this TED-Ed video about Austen’s amazing talent and craft shown in her works:

Margaret Hamilton

computer scientist

Margaret Hamilton standing next to the software code for the Apollo Project. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

The first moon landing in 1969 is one of the most famous moments in human history. Thousands of people worked hard so the Apollo Program could fulfil its purpose9. Among those thousands, many women also contributed to the triumph10 of the moon landing.

One woman’s contribution stands out in particular11: Margaret Hamilton‘s. She is a computer scientist, and she was also one of the first female computer programmers. Hamilton worked on the software12 for the control systems of the lunar13 and control modules used in the Apollo Program. 

She was born in Paoli, Indiana, USA in 1936. She studied mathematics and philosophy at Earlham College in Richmond, Indiana. In the 1960s, she accepted a position at MIT’s Instrumentation Laboratory, where she led the team which worked on developing the software14 used for the Apollo spacecraft.

Hamilton coined the term “software engineering” because she felt their job was as important in the program as the engineers’. In 2016, President Barack Obama awarded15 her the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the greatest civilian honour16 in the US.

If you would like to know more about Hamilton’s contribution to one of the greatest moments in the 20th century, watch this TED-Ed video about her:

Hatshepsut

pharaoh

Seated statue of Hatshepsut. Metropolitan Museum of Art, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

In Ancient Egypt, only sons of kings could become pharaohs. Hatshepsut broke this rule in the 16th century BCE17. She was a powerful Egyptian ruler 1400 years before the famous Cleopatra.

Her father, Thutmose I, died without a male heir18, and Hatshepsut married her half-brother, Thutmose II. Then Thutmose II died, and his son, Thutmose III, was to rule after him.

Thutmose III was Hatshepsut’s stepson and only a toddler19 at the time of his father’s death, so she ruled as queen regent20 until he came of age21. A few years later, she decided to rule alongside her stepson. Consequently22, they ruled together for more than two decades.

Her reign23 brought economic and cultural wealth to her empire. Hatshepsut’s statues and images had masculine features like a beard and muscles because that is how pharaohs were usually portrayed.

Hatshepsut is one of the most interesting women in ancient history. You can learn more about her story in this TED-Ed video:

Georgia O’Keeffe

artist

Georgia O’Keeffe by Alfred Stieglitz, 1918. Photo by Art Institute of Chicago on Unsplash

Enormous flowers and bones towering over landscapes: Georgia O’Keeffe left a memorable artistic legacy24. She left behind a large body of work made up of circa 900 paintings.

Her works are abstract compositions of shapes, lines and colours, and the subjects of her art were mostly flowers, bones and landscapes. 

She was born on a farm in 1887 in Wisconsin, USA. She studied art at the Art Institute of Chicago School and later at the Art Students League of New York. She married the prominent25 American photographer Alfred Stieglitz in 1918. He played an important part in promoting O’Keeffe’s works, and they lived together in New York until Stieglitz died in 1946.

Later, she moved to New Mexico, where she found greater and more inspiration for her work. 

Discover more about O’Keeffe’s artistic talent and the fascinating worlds she created in her works. Watch this great video by TED-Ed about Georgia O’Keeffe:

Rosa Parks

activist

Photo of Rosa Parks by Unseen Histories on Unsplash:
Rosa Parks on June 19th, 1968. Photo by Unseen Histories on Unsplash

In December 1955, a black woman got on a bus in Montgomery, Alabama.

She was supposed to sit in the back of the bus, the designated area for black passengers, but she sat in the front instead. When she was asked to move to the back, she refused and was subsequently26 arrested.

This event was the beginning of the Montgomery Bus Boycott, and the woman was Rosa Parks. She was one of the most well-known leaders in the Civil Rights Movement.

Rosa Parks was born on 4 February 1913 in Tuskegee, Alabama, USA. She had been part of the Civil Rights Movement from a young age. By the time of her arrest27 on the bus, she was a well-known leader and organiser. She helped to organise the Bus Boycott and was actively involved in the Movement until the early 1980s.

Her incredible resistance28 and great legacy in activism earned her the Presidential Medal of Freedom. The award was presented to her by Bill Clinton in 1996. 

Parks had an interesting and long life. You can learn more details about her participation in the Civil Rights Movement and her life in the TED-Ed video below:

Glossary

  1. to captivate: attract and hold the interest and attention of someone ↩︎
  2. sibling: a gender neutral word for a brother or sister ↩︎
  3. witty: smart and humorous ↩︎
  4. contribution: participation in ↩︎
  5. to possess: to have ↩︎
  6. construction: the act of creating ↩︎
  7. subtle: so fine and precise that it’s hard to notice ↩︎
  8. anonymously: without name ↩︎
  9. fulfil its purpose: reach its goal ↩︎
  10. triumph: victory ↩︎
  11. in particular: especially ↩︎
  12. software: a computer program ↩︎
  13. lunar module: a vehicle to land on the Moon ↩︎
  14. to develop a software: to create a computer program ↩︎
  15. to award: to give ↩︎
  16. civilian honour: an award or prize given to a citizen for extraordinary achievements ↩︎
  17. BCE: Before the Common Era; Before Christ ↩︎
  18. heir: a child who inherits after their parents ↩︎
  19. toddler: a small child ↩︎
  20. queen regent: a queen ruling on behalf of another ruler (in case the ruler is a child or otherwise not able to rule) ↩︎
  21. come of age: become an adult ↩︎
  22. consequently: after, as a result ↩︎
  23. reign: ruling ↩︎
  24. legacy: the long-lasting impact of particular events, actions ↩︎
  25. prominent: important, famous ↩︎
  26. subsequently: as a result ↩︎
  27. arrest: the act of taking in by the police ↩︎
  28. resistance: opposition to something ↩︎

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