Transforming the politics of gender and voice: Strategies of expertise and experience

Abstract

This chapter reflects on the ways in which women’s voices have been silenced in the public sphere, and explores some of the counter-tactics deployed by women in reply. It reviews the historical legacy of women’s disenfranchisement and establishes the precarious footing upon which their participation now stands. It focuses on two cases in which women have been caught up in this sexist dynamics: first, Mary Beard’s refusal to ‘shut up’ and capitulate to a normative politics of voice, attracting misogynistic abuse; secondly, Ghazala Khan’s media appearance, which was condemned, not for her speech but for her silence. It discusses how expertise (Beard), experience (Khan), and combinations of the two can be deployed strategically to reply to insult and dismissal in the public sphere.