This Twitter Thread Sheds Light on Women Whose Works are Shadowed by their Brothers’ Names

It took many decades for the world to have Enola Holmes in the literature, while her brother Sherlock Holmes enjoyed the status if being the hero detective and inspiration for many over the years. Enola Holmes, a mystery

novel about a teenage girl Enola and her stint as a detective, has recently been adapted into a webseries on Netflix. While the Sherlock Holmes series was written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, chronicles of Sherlock’s sister is written by Nancy Springer.

Taking inspiration from the Enola Holmes series, OTT platform Netflix is now making an artistic intervention into highlighting the works of women whose contributions and names are usually shadowed by the fame of their brothers. The Ireland and UK Netflix has installed statues of sisters of personalities like author Charles Dickens, poet Thomas Hardy and King Edward VII in several cities of the United Kingdom. The statues have been strategically placed near the statues of their brothers with the women standing tall, their hands placed on the flanks.

The OTT platform also wrote about their contributions in a series of tweets.

“Inspired by Sherlock’s sister ENOLA HOLMES, we installed statues in cities around the UK celebrating the real-life sisters of famous figures whose prestigious achievements have been overshadowed in the history books by their more widely known brothers,”the OTT platform wrote

“Frances Dickens was a talented pianist and singer who studied at the Royal Academy of Music under a former pupil of Beethoven. Frances was so gifted, the Dickens family prioritized her education over Charles’ as they could only afford school fees for one child,” the tweet read about Charles Dickens sister,”

“Poet Thomas Hardy’s sister Mary attended higher education and worked for several years as a teacher before being appointed Headmistress of Piddlehinton Village School. This was a significant achievement for any woman at the time, earning her much respect,” the OTT platfor said as they shared Mary Hardy’s statue.

“Princess Helena Victoria, sister of King Edward VII, was a founding member of the British Red Cross and President of the Royal British Nurses Association. Champion of healthcare workers, she fought for better working conditions, rights, and pay, which led to nurse registration,” the tweet read.

“Maria Anna Mozart was a gifted harpsichord and fortepiano player who toured Vienna and Paris. When playing alongside Wolfgang as a child prodigy, Maria would often receive top billing but as she grew older, cultural pressures made it impossible for her to continue her career,” read another tweet.

When we read about literature, science, fiction, and everything else, there is a male voice narrating it all,well most of times. But where are the women? This thread very well sheds the light on the important fact that women made their mark, but just that they are not talked about. The pop culture conveniently stereotypes them as creatures of childcare, household work and supreme sacrifices.

Source: News18