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Powerful Women Who Ruled the Ancient World

By: Kara Cooney, The Great Courses
Narrated by: Kara Cooney
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Summary

What is power and who is allowed to wield it? Why is female power so rare and, often, so feared? What can the women who gained power in the ancient world teach us about the contemporary world and our modern ideas of gender, authority, and equality?

Listeners will explore these and other questions as you travel back to the ancient world and uncover the stories of remarkable women who overcame a host of barriers to wield power in a male-dominated world. From Egypt and Mesopotamia to China and Rome, you will meet women who worked strategically to gain unprecedented influence and you will see how their stories echo through the centuries, offering surprising relevance to our understanding of gender and sexual dynamics today.

In Powerful Women of the Ancient World, Professor Kara Cooney will share the stories of women who rose to power through ambition; intelligence; skill; and sheer determination. First, you will take a look at what power actually is - how it is defined, how different kinds of power operate, and why women and men are often viewed differently when power is involved. Then, meet the women of the ancient world who challenged the status quo by grasping for and holding authority. Some names listeners will likely already recognize through their “cautionary tales”, such as Cleopatra and Jezebel. Others, though less well-known, will show you the different ways it is possible to be powerful. You will meet rulers like Empress Lü of China and Hatshepsut of Egypt, rebel leaders such as Boudica of Britain, religious leaders like the Hebrew prophetess Deborah, and more.

As listeners will learn, times may have changed since antiquity, but the past has a long reach - and in many ways, our cultural ideas about women and power are surprisingly slow to change.

©2020 Audible Originals, LLC (P)2020 Audible Originals, LLC.
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What listeners say about Powerful Women Who Ruled the Ancient World

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Strong overview squeezed into a short audiobook

Narrator is clear and follows a well planned format. Covering strong women from Egypt, China and Rome.

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really good

really interesting and clear to understand. great subjects and brilliant women discussed. would recommend

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Addictive

Another title from Kara Cooney, interesting and very addictive. As always informative and well-written. I strongly recommend it. 👏👏👏

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  • Overall
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Interesting lectures well worth listening.

I thought that these lectures was worth the time listening to them how women in the past were able to have power,

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Interesting subject that affects women todah

I loved this review based on facts. It gave me insight on today's attitudes towards women in general and especially women in power. Well told and easy to follow.

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Educational and inspiring

I’ve learned so much that was never taught in school. These women did what it took to survive

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Historically informative, personally compelling

A great introduction to a number of women of the ancient world that I had not learned about through popular culture. Some very famous women such as Cleopatra feature, but this audiobook created a great starting point to further explore other ancient women.

Beyond the historical education, the author did a very good job of subtly drawing parallels between how the modern woman navigates the world in comparison to the ancient world. It beckons the listener to critically analyse their own world and perhaps how much or how little has changed.

Very enjoyable narration style, great audiobook overall and happy to have stumbled upon it!

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    4 out of 5 stars

Wow, historic data update

I love when we get historical facts based on great research. It gave me room to explore why today's attitudes and insights regarding women in general and especially women in power or political arenas can be skewed. Well told and the narration by Author Kara Cooney was easy to follow.

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    2 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

History written in woke bitterness

So desperate is this author to paint a picture of downtrodden womanhood today it is as if modern strong women (regardless of their politics) Margaret Thatcher, Golda Meir, Indira Ghandi etc had never existed.

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