R&G|MAGAZINE Edition #14 - September 2015 | Page 47

considered all the same; devoid

the famous 1940s saying: “Behind
every great man there’s a great
woman”. Aretha Franklin, in her
1985 hit song “Sisters are Doin’
” reflected the
change in society’s mind-set when
she sang the opening verse: “Now

ambition. Adichie gives mention
to this in stating that:

say that behind every great man,
there had to be a great woman. Now

“WE TEACH GIRLS TO
SHRINK THEMSELVES,
TO MAKE THEMSELVES
SMALLER. WE SAY TO
GIRLS “YOU CAN HAVE
AMBITION, BUT NOT TOO
MUCH, YOU SHOULD AIM
TO BE SUCCESSFUL, BUT
NOT TOO SUCCESSFUL
OTHERWISE YOU WILL
THREATEN THE MAN…
WE TEACH GIRLS THAT
THEY CANNOT BE
SEXUAL BEINGS IN THE
WAY THAT BOYS ARE.”

that it’s no longer true…We said,

physically, sexually, emotionally
and mentally. While women are
considered “important” in their
the same time not respected on

1900s was a largely patriarchal
society, based on biblical teachings
- women ran household and family

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standin’ on their own two feet and
ringing their own bells…” In the
twenty years that spanned between
James Brown releasing “T
a Man’s, Man’s, Man’s World”
and Aretha belting out “Sisters
”, the
women had changed completely.
Fast forward another thirty years
later to Beyonce chanting “Who
run the world? Girls!” and we
see the female empowerment
movement pushing the female
role even further to a 360 degree
turn on James Brown - where
women are portrayed as dominant
being “Strong enough to bear the
children then get back to business.”