Great Women

"Mystery" kind of solved. I was wondering why there were hardly any to no great women philosophers, scientists, historians, artists, poets, and composers in history. Keeping in mind also that I was ignorant and wasn't aware of some. Since, I have met plenty of very intelligent and artistic women in my life time. Just as many women who are intelligent and some even more than guys. So it can't be a gender thing. But this cognitive dissonance still remained in my mind until I thought harder and more objectively about this for a few days.

I have concluded the following (now, many of these may sound like a cliche but cliches are usually based on some truth): 1. Until the mid 1950's or so women were treated like second class citizens even in the most modernized and free country in the world, the U.S. and along these lines, women weren't given the same latitude and opportuniities (and more importantly, CHOICES) in education, jobs, professions, etc. as men. So, greatness in the public arena was nearly non existent. This is a fact and was a reality. It was a socio-economic handicap. No question about that; 2) Womens' role was primarily and universally accepted as child bearers and rearers. Thus, that was the social more, expectation, and duty. So, if majority of the women had children in their 20s and 30s, which is a very time consuming and mentally challenging situation, where would one find the time for activities like philosophy and science which are in themselves a very time consuming and mentally challenging occupation?; 3) Women are/were more intersted in more emotive topics like social interactions vs.cold science. This they channeled into the medium of literature. Great women in literature are plenty and numerous. Jane Austen, Edith Wharton, Virginia Woolf, Emily Dickenson, etc. etc.; and 4) I also bet that some of the great works that women have created never got serious consideration nor recognition and fell through the cracks in a male biased/dominated culture and institutions of the past and thus, many were not even aware of their capabilities, achievements, and also lacked something very necessary for aspiring to greatness, role models.

In any case, today, the playing field is now, more or less, somewhat even. For example, there are more women than men in our best law and medical schools and women have more freedom and independence then ever before.

Incidentally, despite all of this post mortem, I do think that there will still be more men in certain areas like engineering and I do think that there are differences between what interests men vs. what interest women. Afterall, we are similar but also different. But overall, after 4,000 yrs. of delays due to all of the social barriers that I outlined above. Both men and women, will be partners and equals in great historical achievements.

This time around though women will have their own gender role models and their greatness will expand in the public eye and in history beyond the primary achievement (and no small one at that) of bearing and raising great people like Newton, Einstein, and Madam Currie and monsters like Hitler, Stalin, and Charles Manson :).