Well hello there lovely readers!
I might have tricked you a lil' bit with that headline ;)
This post is not, as the title may suggest, a list of women like Jennifer Lawrence, or 'Katniss,' or anyone else that's 'cool' at the moment. It's also not a post like my regular ones, which focus on things I've been doing or thinking. Nope, today I've compiled a list of five women in the public eye who have had some impact on me in the course of my time here on Earth. Each of these lady folk have achieved a great deal in their own lives, and have also motivated or inspired me to aim for similar heights of Greatness. Some of them may be surprising, some may even be controversial(!), but in my opinion all are worthy of their place in the list, and all will definitely have a very detailed footnote in the book of My Life.
So, without further flibberty-gibbeting from me, here they are, in no particular order.
1. Angela Gossow
When I was 13 years old, I was flicking through the then-great pages of Kerrang! magazine, when I came across an interview with some band called Arch Enemy. I noticed them at first because there was a woman in the band, and I remembered the article for some time to come because the description of Angela's singing included words I had never heard associated with someone's voice before. I can't remember the exact expressions Kerrang! used, but they were probably something like 'inhuman,' 'brutal,' and 'insane.' I wondered what the hell that sounded like, and when I finally heard
"We Will Rise" on Scuzz TV a few months later, I was not disappointed. Woman has lungs.
Pretty much from that point on I was fascinated with metal music. While my friends described Angela's vocals as the sound of someone 'being sick backwards' (Sophia!), I was listening to as much death metal as I could get my ears on. Intelligent, powerful music made by and for weirdos, it was the most exciting thing to happen to me in living memory. Even better, Angela Gossow's individualistic, anti-authority, pro-animal-and-human rights, refusal to look like one of the pretty girls attittude, struck a chord. While I will be the first to admit that Angela's extreme lifestyle is realistic only for the most hardcore of personality types, she was such a breath of fresh air to my teenage self that although I thought she was stark raving mad, I still very much looked up to her. I had posters, including one of the photo above, I had her all over my jotters and folders from school, and in my head, Angela, along with a few women-in-metal friends, (
Cristina Scabbia,
Sharon Den Adel,
Otep) provided me with a frame of reference for events in my life. Would Angela Gossow be too scared to wear these ridiculously awesome PVC platform boots? No. So I wore them. Angela Gossow would not be afraid to question my teacher's authority, so neither will I. In the spirit of complete honesty, I took very little persuasion to do my own thing or speak up about things
anyway, but knowing that there was a fully grown woman, who had had what was in my eyes
major success (anyone who had been in Terrorizer magazine was the epitome of success), who would probably have agreed with what I was doing, was motivating.
Looking back, many of the things I did perhaps wouldn't have met with Ms Gossow's approval - not least my conversion
back from vegetarianism! But then, Angela Gossow wouldn't care what others think, and neither do I. Angela Gossow does not believe in idols (No Gods, No Masters), and so the fact I did/do not live entirely by her example and do not agree with everything she says, really serves to highlight the effectiveness of the message she spread during my teen years: be strong, question everything, go your own way.
That is as powerful a message now as it ever was in the noughties. Having the confidence to make your own decisions, trust your own instincts, and forge your own path can be an exhausting, stressful and lonely journey. Not everyone will get it, and it's inevitable that your fiery wilfulness will burn others, however unintentionally. But it's the right thing to do, and in the end you'll do more good than harm by a long shot, if that's your aim. We all need a little motivation from time to time, and for me, the war cries of terrifying German women usually do it.
"Fearless on my final quest
Find truth beyond the flesh
Fleeting past my dreams of unfulfilled desire
My strength unwavering
My journey just beginning
A desperate race through the corridors of hell."
If you're interested, you can read Angela's story in her own words
here.
2. Shirley Manson
All hail the red heads!!
Not only is Ms Manson a fellow copper top, but she's also my kinsman. Originally from Edinburgh, Scotland, for the last two decades Manson has been fronting alternative rock band
Garbage, and doing some rather prestigious acting roles alongside. Another outspoken, rebellious rockstar-type (sense a pattern?), Shirley is a current celeb favourite of mine, with her Facebook posts being among the best-loved in my news feed. From weighing in on the whole Miley Cyrus/Sinead O' Connor debate, to posting pictures of her dog, Manson's posts are representative of her many-sided personality, which has shined through in her lyrics, her style, her choices and more recently her social media interactions, throughout the length of her career. While some lady celebs are understandably cautious about the way they are portrayed in the media, and go to great measures to avoid being exposed to the world on the pages of gossip magazines, with red circles around their supposed imperfections, slogans suggesting their lives are falling apart, and other demeaning, demoralizing, bullying celeb-mag tactics, Shirley has had a refreshingly varied portfolio for almost 20 years. She can do
sexy, but she can also do
moody,
controversial,
emotional, and
taking over the world - James Bond style. She's also got opinions, which she'll share with you if you care to read
her Facebook, and she also once 'flashed' Washington crowd members on stage during "Sex Is Not The Enemy," prompting a scuffle onstage as security attempted to cover her up, thus proving her point, really. It turns out she was wearing a flesh coloured bra under her t-shirt anyway, not that nipples are even that big a deal. She's been railing against the mainstream since the early 90s, and although I was a fan, it was only with Garbage's 4th studio release, 2005's
Bleed Like Me, that Shirley really entered my radar, and only since 2012's
Not Your Kind Of People, that I've discovered her Facebook and become a serious fan. Shirley's posts remind me to stick up for what I believe in, and find my own ways of doing things, but also not to take life so seriously, not to be afraid to show other sides of myself, and to enjoy the moment. She also makes me want to be a rockstar, on account of I can actually sing her songs, but that's nae the point!
3. Amber Erlandsson
I promise not all my favourite women are rockstars ;)
Amber Erlandsson, stage-name Morrigan Hel, is a "Fiery British Domina, performer and practitioner of the dark arts ; )," who
also "run(s) London's Murder Mile Studios and make(s) a horrendous racket in
Nemhain." (
Facebook)
See, only part rockstar! ;)
So why is she inspirational? Well, firstly, look at those shoes. Anyone who can wear shoes like that without looking like they never actually learned to walk is a hero in my eyes. Also, fuck. What a career. Model, actress, TV presenter, dominatrix, singer, writer - she has done whatever the hell she wants to do, and done it
incredibly. Sheer bravery, if you ask me. I'll have some of that please, Mrs Erlandsson!! (Also,
her husband is a God, and
his brother too, who co-incidentally is the drummer for Arch Enemy, bringing us full circle to the beginning of my post!) I'm actually fan-girling so much right now I can't remember how to write! Let's move on!
4. Laci Green
Oh hai!
Laci is YouTube's number 1 sex positive vlogger (source: me). She uploads videos pretty much every week about sex+ topics such as body image, sexuality and relationships, with emphasis on making sure young people in particular have access to reliable, safe, positive information about sex and related issues. Waging war against narrow-minded viewpoints and anything that might make you feel bad about yourself, Laci's videos inspire not just the really young but also the less-young-than-they-wish-they-were to think twice about accepting conventional wisdom or peer-group chat, and to, you guessed it, think for themselves, be who they want to be, etc. Basically all the things I love about the above three women!
Laci's YouTube channel has gone from strength to strength, and what was a side-project in High School has enabled Laci to build a career which has taken her on tour around America and also onto the Dr Phil show. Well done that girl!
5. St Clare of Assisi
Nae even lying!
While Clare may seem an unlikely addition to this list, I am nothing if not avidly inclusive of the unlikely, and so she shall be given her rightful place on the list. Credit where credit's due and all that!
I became acquainted with Clare's story about a year or two ago as part of my degree. I did a course on St Francis and his followers during my 3rd year, and, doing pretty well on the course, I decided to stick with the topic for my dissertation. I chose, however, to focus on Clare rather than Francis, and to look at female Franciscans because females of all times and eras are chronically under-studied.* While I did not expect to find much I identified with in the life and ways of a twelfth-century nun who believed herself to be quite literally married to poverty, obedience, and God, I did in fact come to respect her ingenuity, her conviction, and her style of leadership.
*With the exception of any vagina person featured in OK! magazine, who
invariably will be not just studied but inspected, dissected, torn
apart, put under a microscope, critiqued, ridiculed, chewed up and spat
back out again but in such a way that that person feels they have been
honoured.
Clare, very early on in life, came to understand her purpose. She was born and raised in Assisi, Italy, and was well-known throughout the city for being a pious young woman. When she was still young she heard her soul-mate, St Francis, preach his message of a life of poverty and humility, which he understood to be the way God intended us to live. Clare was immediately a follower of Francis, and they developed a very special relationship throughout their lifetimes. Clare, the daughter of a wealthy merchant family, defied parental authority and ran away from home to escape marriage when she was just 18 - after six years of resisting the engagements her parents had been setting up for her. She fled to Francis, and was taken to a convent at San Damiano, where she joined the nuns there. She would go on to found female Franciscanism, and would write what is believed to be the first monastic Rule written by a woman. She was a pioneer, and as such, she would spend her entire life fighting for what she believed in. It was not just her family who believed she should not join Francis, but also the Church. Several succeeding popes, who, in the eleventh and twelfth centuries through which Clare lived, were the supreme authorities of all Europe, would use their powers to try and prevent Clare from leading her Sisters in the Franciscan way. Male Franciscanism was characterised by wandering throughout the land, begging for alms to survive, owning no property or goods of value and relying on the Providence of God. While it was acceptable for men to behave like this, it was not a suitable profession for women. Women religious were expected to live in cloisters, to be enclosed, and therefore they were forced to rely on local charity and male Franciscans to provide for them. The Church felt that the women were a burden, and tried to offer them some land which they could tend, as security. While well-intentioned, this obliterated the sisters' fundamental principle and the means by which they would receive reward in Heaven: Poverty. Clare, as their leading lady, had to find a way to appease the church (for Clare loved the church, and had in any case taken a vow of obedience which made her unable to ignore the pope even if she had wanted to) while still remaining true to Franciscanism, and, indeed, God. By not adhering to the principle of poverty, Clare's soul was at stake, and so were those of her ever-growing number of sisters.
The most notable point about Clare is her unwavering conviction. Despite the fact that her vision for female Franciscanism brought her into direct conflict with the Pope himself, she did not for a second falter. The popes which Clare served under would issue many new policies which were intended to prevent the abbess from establishing her order of Poor Clares, and in the face of each policy she would remain clear-sighted and true to her vision. Not only this, but she would encourage and enable other women to do so. Agnes of Bohemia, another wealthy daughter of the city who eschewed familial wealth to join the Franciscan movement, would write to Clare as Pope Gregory IX tried to force her to accept land. Clare would remind Agnes that poverty was 'the one thing necessary,' the one way they would find God, and so Agnes, with the help of her brother King Wenceslas I of Bohemia, managed to outmaneuver Gregory and remain true to the Franciscan way. To stay so clear-sighted in the face of such opposition is admirable. Most of us, both in Clare's day and our own, have issues to contend with, and all of us at some time or another will feel pressure to make decisions or live a different way of life. These people may be well-intentioned, for example the eighty kajillion people who tell me I should be a teacher, and for another example, Pope Gregory IX's attempt to protect the nuns by ensuring they had enough wealth to live off. However, this way of life was not for Clare. I have tried to convey, without going into too much detail, how important it was to Clare to live a life with absolutely
nothing. She believed that anything she needed would be provided for her by the grace of God, and moreover, she believed that this was how God wanted us to live and therefore how one could ensure reward in Heaven. No matter how practical Gregory's interference was, it would shatter Clare and Francis's whole set of values, their whole way of life and their whole belief system, which they had dedicated their lives to living and to helping others to live. I found Clare's bravery to be inspiring, and her conviction allowed her to be a pioneer: revered in her time, sainted upon her death, and remembered throughout history.
And so there we have it! A list like no other, of inspiring women who have pioneered religious movements, genres of music and other things in between, all tied together with the rather flimsy thread of my interest. I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to get some comments on this post, so whoever you are, however you came across this post and whatever your opinions, please feel free to leave me a few words below. Do you agree? What or who inspires you? Maybe I should stick to blog posts about myself? Whatever you want to say please do :) And I will leave you with the usual sign off-
Over and out,
Much love,
Love love love,
Naomi
