Paris, 1405. Christine de Pizan sits alone in her study, reading yet another scholarly treatise explaining why women are inferior to men. Every philosopher agrees. Every theologian. Every university in Europe teaches it as fact. For a moment, she almost believes them. Then she picks up her quill and begins to write. Christine became the first professional female writer in Europe, supporting her family with her pen after being widowed at twenty-five. But she didn't just write for money---she built a fortress of words defending a truth the world was trying to erase: that women were fully human, fully capable, fully worthy of dignity and respect. Her Book of the City of Ladies cataloged history's great women---warriors, scholars, artists, saints---proving that women had always excelled when given the chance. Five centuries later, we live in a world transformed by her courage, yet still fighting versions of the same battle. Christine reminds us that some truths have to be defended in every generation, that speaking clearly in your own time creates possibilities for people you'll never meet, and that the small act of refusing to be silenced can echo for centuries.

Read the transcript

Share and read comments.