The thing women must do to rise to power is to redefine their
The thing women must do to rise to power is to redefine their femininity. Once, power was considered a masculine attribute. In fact, power has no sex.
Katharine Graham, the iron-willed publisher who guided The Washington Post through storms of scandal and triumph, once declared: “The thing women must do to rise to power is to redefine their femininity. Once, power was considered a masculine attribute. In fact, power has no sex.” In this utterance burns a timeless truth: that the chains binding women to silence were forged not only by law and custom, but by the very definition of what it meant to be feminine. To rise, women must reclaim the word, strip it of weakness, and infuse it with strength, vision, and authority.
For centuries, power was cast in the armor of masculinity—hard, unyielding, and distant. Women were told that to be feminine was to be soft, obedient, ornamental. Thus the halls of authority excluded them by design, for the very language of power rejected their essence. Graham’s wisdom was to proclaim that this was illusion, not truth. Power has no sex. It is not male nor female, but human—a force that flows wherever courage, discipline, and vision dwell.
Her own life was the proof of her words. When her husband’s death placed The Washington Post in her hands, the world doubted her. She was dismissed as a widow, unprepared for leadership. Yet she redefined her femininity, not by discarding it, but by embodying it anew—firm yet graceful, decisive yet humane. Under her watch, the Post became the sword of truth during the Watergate scandal, toppling a president. History shows that her power was not diminished by her womanhood; it was magnified by her refusal to let it be defined by others.
History offers another example: Cleopatra, queen of Egypt. The ancients scorned her as seductress, but in truth she was strategist, diplomat, and ruler. She too redefined her femininity, using intelligence and charm as weapons in a man’s world, proving that power wears many faces. Though her reign ended in tragedy, her legend endures as testimony that power obeys no single sex—it is seized by those bold enough to wield it.
Therefore, O children of the future, take heed of Graham’s wisdom. Let women cast aside the falsehood that femininity and power are enemies. Let them instead define themselves anew, carrying grace into boardrooms, compassion into politics, and resilience into every sphere of rule. For power is not bound by gender, but by the courage to claim it. Know this truth: power has no sex, but character.
TDThuy Diem
Is Graham’s point that women must redefine femininity a call to break away from societal expectations? In her view, is power something that transcends gender, or is it just a reflection of how women must adapt to succeed in a traditionally male-dominated sphere? How can we challenge the idea that power has a 'sex' in the first place, and ensure women don’t have to alter their identities to gain access to it?
KTQuoc Khanh Truong
Katharine Graham argues that power should not be gendered. But how deeply ingrained is the association between masculinity and power in our society? Are women who display power seen as 'unnatural' or 'intimidating' because they defy these norms? How can we reshape perceptions so that power is viewed as something accessible to all, without anyone needing to 'redefine' who they are to fit into that mold?
TTHuynh Thach Thao
What does it mean to 'redefine femininity'? Katharine Graham suggests that women need to break free from traditional stereotypes about what it means to be powerful. Is it fair to say that women have been socialized to see power as something that belongs to men? How can we encourage both women and men to embrace different expressions of power that don't fit into rigid gender norms?
TPThuy Phuong
Is it possible that power has been so long associated with masculinity that women feel they must abandon their femininity to succeed? Katharine Graham’s insight into redefining femininity suggests that women need to separate gendered traits from the idea of power. How can we shift societal views to ensure that power isn’t viewed through a gendered lens, but instead seen as a human quality that anyone can embody, regardless of sex?