Jane Marcet wasn’t a chemist. She wasn’t a physicist or a biologist or an astronomer – but she probably made a bigger contribution to science than anyone else in the 19th century. So why do none of us know her name? Guest Miranda Garno Nesler explains what made Jane Marcet’s contributions so unique and so important, and why so many of us might be thinking about science – and scientists – all wrong. Miranda Garno …
Before Ida Tarbell took on John D. Rockefeller’s Standard Oil Company, the idea of a journalist bringing down the largest monopoly in the US would have been laughable. But her relentless investigation, passion for the truth, and innovative code of journalistic ethics wouldn’t just change the country’s businesses — it would revolutionize American journalism forever. Meet the original “Muckraker.” Our guest is Stephanie Gorton, author of Citizen Reporters: S.S. McClure, Ida Tarbell and the Magazine …
Maria Branwell Brontë most famously exists as an absence — the mother whose biggest, or only, influence resides in her “not being there there” during the lives of her famous daughters Charlotte, Emily and Anne. For 200 years scholars believed there wasn’t enough material for a biography of Maria. But author Sharon Wright believed there had to be more to find, if only she “went looking properly.” And what she found is truly remarkable. Join …
When Harriet Jacobs’ enslaver threatened to sell her children away to the plantation unless she accepted his sexual abuse, she decided the only way to keep them safe was to run. But with no resources and no way to get north, where could she go instead? The answer is an astonishing one. Jacobs’ story is one of the most dramatic and remarkable ‘slave narratives’ in United States history, yet for over 100 years, everyone believed …
In 1996, a graduate student working in a library in England discovered the manuscript of a novel and 120 poems by completely unknown 17th century woman writer. Hester Pulter had been hiding in plain sight for four centuries. Now a dedicated team of scholars is sharing her work with the world. “Then being enfranchised, free as my verse, I shall surround this spacious universe, Until by other atoms thrust and hurled We give a being …
Do we live in the best of all possible worlds? Émilie du Châtelet thought so, and set out to prove it with empirical evidence three hundred years ago. Raised at the lavish court of Louis XIV, she stood out like a sore thumb: while the women around her were glamorous, graceful and illiterate, she was clunky, fierce, and bookish. The story of her world-changing contribution to science is as delightful as it is surprising: part …
Carolyn Cassady was an artist, costume designer, writer, and critical influence on the members of the Beat Generation. Her marriage to Neal Cassady and her friendships with Jack Kerouac and other prominent members of the Beats have long overshadowed her own life and accomplishments, but with the recent publication of new manuscripts discovered after her death that is finally beginning to change. An astonishingly talented and prolific creative force, Carolyn Cassady’s legacy of determination, strength, …
Ursula Bloom wrote over 560 books, earning her a place in the Guinness Book of World Records as the world’s most prolific female writer. Born in 1892, Ursula spent her early years in Shropshire, England, the daughter of a clergyman. Her memories of childhood Christmases at the turn of the 20th century were published many decades ago in a local periodical, Warwickshire and Worcestershire Life. What’sHerName is pleased to revive Ursula Bloom’s charming memoirs of …
In this episode, a 17th-century tale of true love and extreme patience. Dorothy Osborne and William Temple fell deeply in love, but her family forbade the match. For years, while Dorothy’s creepily overbearing brother presented her with suitor after suitor of his own choosing, Dorothy and William faithfully sent each other secret love letters. Dorothy’s letters survive, and reveal the story of her escape from the clutches of her possessive brother in pursuit of “happily …
Marjorie Hillis’ surprise bestseller Live Alone and Like It was a sensation when it was published in 1936. Determined to shift the narrative around singleness and encourage women to make active choices about their lives, Hillis used the insights gained in her decades as an editor for Vogue to empower single women to enjoy their single years instead of viewing them as an embarrassment. Her innovative ideas about relationships, female empowerment, friendship and career are …
