Behind Every Great Man by Marlene Wagman-Gellar

Image provided by Sourcebooks.
             It is true, with most of history we think only of the men that were involved.  Hardly ever do we hear about their wives who were at home (or sometimes by their sides) while their husbands made history.  While watching Schindler’s List I didn’t think about what Oskar Schindler’s wife was doing while he was creating his list.  To be honest, I didn’t think Mr. Schindler even had a wife.  According to Behind Every Great Man: The Forgotten Women Behind the World’s Famous and Infamous, he certainly did.
                Behind Every Great Man is full of women you probably either never heard of, or did not give much thought.  Even before reading Alex Haley’s The Autobiography of Malcolm X I knew Malcolm X had a wife, I just didn’t know anything about her.  Sadly, after reading the book, I still couldn’t tell you anything.  I don’t know if that was because she was not in the book much, or because I had to rush through it for a class (it has been a long time since I read the book, so I honestly don’t know the answer).  Either way, it was with Behind Ever Great Man that I truly got to know who Betty Dean Sanders, the wife of Malcolm X, was.  Ms. Sanders (later to become Betty Shabazz, amongst other names) grew up in a foster home where race relations were not discussed.  It was not until she was older and out on her own that she began to see and understand the discrimination that was happening around her.  It was this new information, and an invitation to dinner at the Nation of Islam Temple of Harlem, that led Ms. Sanders to meeting her husband and onto the life she was destined to lead.             
                Another person whose wife I never thought about was Simon Wiesenthal’s.  Again, as with Mr. Schindler, for some reason I had it in my head that Mr. Wiesenthal did not have a wife at all.  In reality, there were many times when he almost didn’t.  He and his wife, born Cyla ller, were separated so many times in their early years together, and for many different reasons.  At first, it was for Mr. Wiesenthal to go to school.  Then once Mr. Wiesenthal and Ms. ller were married, they were split apart because of World War II.  In all honesty, it is pretty much a miracle that this husband and wife found each other after the war.  Believing his wife to be dead, it was only by the help of others and a stroke of luck that Mr. and Ms. Wiesenthal found each other again.  After that, it was with Ms. Wiesenthal’s love and support (even though she did not want to hear the stories) that Simon Wiesenthal became possibly the most well-known Nazi hunter in history.
                Since I have spoken about Simon and Cyla Wiesenthal, let me go back to Oskar Schindler and his wife Emilie.  She should have gotten so much more credit for what Mr. Schindler is famous for having done than she did.  Born Emilie Pelzl, she helped create the list that saved I don’t know how many Jews from execution.  She was also the one who acted as a double agent, helping the Jews during the day, and pretending to be friends with the SS and their wives by night.  After the war, the Schindlers had to escape Poland because both those for and against the Nazis saw the Schindlers as enemies.  On top of being on the run, Ms. Schindler also had to deal with her husband’s infidelities and money-making schemes.  It was a hard life, which is why I’m glad that in the 1990s, Ms. Schindler finally got the recognition she deserved.
                I’ve really only given you summaries of just a few of the women that are in this book.  Many of the other women I have never heard of, but there are some I certainly have.  Betty Ford (a first lady of the United States), of course, Jane Henson (the Muppets!), and Ethel Rosenberg (always said in connection with her husband, Julius), are some of the ones I had heard of, amongst others.  The one I probably knew the most about was Alma Hitchcock (born Alma Reville).  Having seen the movie Hitchcock, and having watched a lot of Hitchcock films and specials, I have learned how skilled and involved Ms. Hitchcock was in the film process.  She gave suggestions and made observations that improved the films her husband made, turning them into the classics they are today.  Ms. Hitchcock also put up with the man himself, something that is rumored to not have been an easy feat.            
                While a great many of the women written about in this book were supportive of their husbands (frequently living devastating lives because of it), not all of them were.  Some of the women talked about were far more interested in the money and the fame their husbands brought them.  In either case, it was fascinating to read about each of these women, especially since so many were connected to other well-known people even before they met their famous husbands.  This just goes to show how small this world can truly be.
                With so many men we are taught about in history, there are tons of women left to learn about.  In the back of Behind Every Great Man there is a way to contact the author to suggest a woman you think should have their story told.  I’m hoping this means there is another book in the works, because I would really like to read these other women’s stories.                 

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

The Doctor Blake Mysteries

The Brokenwood Mysteries

George Gently