Why I'd rather be the Wicked Witch than Snow White
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Nikita Gill |
TEDxLondonWomen
• December 2019
What is it about a wicked woman that instantly enthralls us? Why should difficult and different instantly mean dangerous? Reimagining ancient myths and archetypes, poet Nikita Gill brings some of literature’s most maligned or underwritten female characters out of the shadows. From Medusa to Lillith, she challenges our ingrained fear of the ‘difficult’ woman as hard, unnurturing and unmaternal. She shows us how powerful women would be if we only protected and helped each other and why “softness” in women is often another way of men telling them to be quiet. By taking stories that historically pit women against one another or even leave them in the shadows altogether, Nikita seizes control of the narrative, encouraging her protagonists to disobey the patriarchal rules and live for themselves.