Summary

Chapter 1, titled “Is Harvard Afraid of Mrs. Pankhurst,” covers William Moulton Marston’s, eventual creator of Wonder Woman, childhood as well as his formative experiences his freshman year at Harvard which provided a strong foundation for his feminist inclination. The Chapter begins with stating William Moulton Marston “…decided at the unnaturally early and altogether impetuous age of eighteen that the time had come for him to die” (3). Without explanation of that statement, Lepore describes how Marston was born to Annie Moulton Marston when she was the relatively old birthing age of 34. Raised in the family’s large New England estate, Moulton Castle, he was considered a savior by his grandfather on his mother’s side as he had only one son who died as a child. Lepore then explains the opening passage, saying Marston from his childhood through his late twenties believed in...