_Paris, 1405._ Wood and tallow smoke thicken in the air. Sounds of the city–merchants, artisans–echo off the stone walls. In a small room of a modest home, there’s a simple wooden desk, a shelf of books, a quill, parchment, and ink. By candlelight, Christine de Pizan writes: > A great wonder grows in my heart. What might be the reason or cause that so many different men--scholars and others--have been, and continue to be, inclined to speak--in words, treatises, and writings--with so many slanders and criticisms of women and their nature. ![[chrisine-de-pizan-writing.jpg]] Christine de Pizan is perhaps the first feminist we know of. In 1405, she wrote _The Book of the City of Ladies_, a bold critique of widespread misogyny in the intellectual circles of her time. What makes her vision relevant today–and so inspiring for me–is its generosity. She doesn’t stop with her criticism. She calls on “Lady Reason” (_I’m all for the feminine characterization of logic_) to help her imagine a city where women can gather. > Lady Reason began to speak to me again and said, ‘Come, my daughter, take the tool of your intelligence and dig deep to make a large trench where the foundations of the wall will be laid. For it will be necessary to enclose this City with high, strong walls, so that those who seek to attack it cannot harm its inhabitants.’ She imagines laying the stories of her heroines into the very bedrock of the city: > We started work on the city by laying the foundations, setting down as stones the stories of strong, wise, and noble women from the past. Each tale a building block, creating a city of virtue, wisdom, and strength. From 600 years in the past, Christine de Pizan challenges us to consider where we draw our inspiration. If you were to lay the stories of the people who inspire you into the foundation of a great city, whose names would be etched in its stones? Whose stories would give the city strength, resilience, and wisdom?