Gender
Music
idea
Why did bloody knights write love songs about spring blossoms?
The masculinity of medieval knighthood was expansive enough for both graphic violence and the joys of a flower meadow
by Jennifer Saltzstein
The body and physical health
idea
Menopause was a French invention at a time of revolution
French doctors of the 1800s had a vested interest in pathologising women’s ageing, as do many commercial entities today
by Alison M Downham Moore
Gender
guide
How to be a man
Old ideas of manliness make us miserable. Being labelled ‘toxic’ doesn’t help. A reimagined masculinity is the way forward
by Andrew Reiner
Film
film
From drab to fab – a playful dissection of the Hollywood makeover
Directed by Sue Ding
Gender
idea
In more prosperous societies, are men and women more similar?
How much the sexes differ psychologically depends on how fair and wealthy a country is. But not in the way you’d think
by Kåre Hedebrant & Agneta Herlitz
Gender
idea
There is nothing new about gender fluidity and nonconformity
From Mesopotamia and ancient Greece to precolonial India and medieval London, gender has always been more than a binary
by Chris Wheatley
Work and vocation
guide
How to get promoted as a woman
Own your ambitions, know your potential, seek mentors, and other advice for navigating around glass ceilings and cliffs
by Jan Hills
Friendship
film
Fatu treks into the glamorous unknown during his first outing in makeup
Directed by Iiti Yli-Harja
Thinkers and theories
idea
How the feminist philosopher Helene Stöcker canonised Nietzsche
Despite Nietzsche’s reputation for misogyny, his work inspired a leading women’s rights activist of the early 20th century
by Lydia Moland
Human rights and justice
idea
The day the Taliban banned women like me from working
With my daughters’ education cancelled, I thought the regime had done its worst. Then a new message came from my office
by Nargis
Parenting and families
film
Past trauma bleeds into the bond between one mother and her daughter
A film by Danski Tang