In this post from the A to Z compendium of The Feminine Icon. We are at the letter G today. I decided to look at the way we have associated whole groups of women with a single term that captures some element of what has changed for women in a specific time period. Most things […]
Iconic F: The Fairy Lights of Marie Curie
F is obviously for female and feminine, but also for a woman’s passion for research and discovery as exemplified by the Fairy Lights of Madame Marie Curie. “One of our joys was to go into our workroom at night; we then perceived on all sides the feebly luminous silhouettes of the bottles or capsules containing […]
Iconic E: Erinnyes are Furious
I gave serious thought to doing the Every Woman thing, or even Every Town for Gun Safety, but decided the stretch would be possible but not fun. Then, I had an epiphany, I remembered that the Furies were first called Erinyes. Furies were not females to be messed with. According to Robert Graves in, The […]
Iconic C: Not that C Word! It is Cailleach
No I am not going there. So far in this examination of the iconic feminine we have looked at the similarities of two very different women and about an iconic doll that shaped the play of girls since the mid-20th Century. It is time to delve into the cultural mythic icon. Cailleach is the Celtic Crone […]
Iconic B: Barbie
The Barbie doll was introduced in 1959 as an adult doll to serve as a role model for little girls. Up until that time girls primarily played with baby dolls as their staple toys. Later-born baby boomers grew up with Barbie as the doll used to act out adult female roles in their play. This […]
Iconic A: Audre Lorde and Audrey Hepburn
The depth and breadth of Iconic Femininity is perfectly illustrated by the letter A. Audre Lorde and Audrey Hepburn lived impressive lives and both became icons what it is to be a woman. Neither were women with which to trifle. Audrey Hepburn As a youth in the Netherlands in World War II Audrey Hepburn developed […]