Sarah

“Teaching children about great men enforced a sense of a great nation, a version of history which could be distributed along the length and breadth of vast empires. Controlling access to the past controls populations in the present, and determining who writes history can affect thought and behaviour. Famously the Nazis created a version of German history which cherry-picked and repackaged information so as to benefit the regime's agenda.”
― Janina Ramírez, Femina: A New History of the Middle Ages, Through the Women Written Out of it

“The burning, destruction or removal of books carries with it two purposes: to destroy the physical objects, and to remove their contents from people’s memories.”
― Janina Ramírez, Femina: A New History of the Middle Ages, Through the Women Written Out of It – A Cundill Prize Longlisted Social History of Medieval Europe

“She listens at doors and around corners. She has always had this habit. A child in danger must learn to pay more attention to the adults than a child loved and cherished.”
― Naomi Alderman, The Power

“In times of colonial expansion, when support for the slave trade was required, the historian fed readers tales of explorers and conquerors. When soldiers were needed, ready to die for king and country, the historian gave them heroes and warriors. When society favored male dominance and female subservience, the historian provided male oriented history

What about writing history now, at a time when so many are striving for greater equality? Can looking backward impact how we look forward? Finding empowered women with agency from the medieval period is my way of shifting gear, providing new narratives for readers today.”
― Janina Ramírez, Femina: A New History of the Middle Ages, Through the Women Written Out of it