It has long been obvious that our world’s power structures are set up to benefit men, so how does women’s power play out in our narratives? What happens when women are suddenly given a power they are usually deprived of?

Menna Van Praag joins us to discuss power in its gendered form. Is there enough of it to go around? Do we subconsciously believe that a powerful woman is an affront to masculinity? Does giving women power mean taking it away from men? (The answer to that last one is a resounding NO in case you were in any doubt).

Mentioned in this episode:

  • The Dutch House by Ann Patchett
  • The Mental Load: A Feminist Comic by Emma
  • The Princess Bride
  • Wonder Woman
  • Captain Marvel
  • Nimona by Noelle Stevenson
  • Designated Survivor
  • The Untamed
  • Shrek
  • The Shape of Water
  • Beauty and the Beast
  • Splash
  • The Princess and the Frog
  • Buffy
  • Invisible Women by Caroline Criado Perez
  • Circe by Madeline Miller

© Rafal Lapszanski

Menna van Praag was born in Cambridge, England and studied Modern History at Oxford University. She’s the author of five magical realism novels, all set in Cambridge. The first instalment of her fantasy trilogy, The Sisters Grimm, will be published in 2020 by Transworld (UK) & HarperVoyager (US).

She reads too many books & eats too much cake.