The Successors 69 do not overtly speak of the literacy of these prolific female Successors, it is likely that as accomplished relatives of Muhammad’s wives, they did learn at least the rudiments of reading and writing. These skills in turn may have been a factor in their success. ‘A’isha is reputed in the historical sources to have been more open in mixed company, disdaining to cover her face so that her beauty would not be hidden. Abu al-Faraj alTsbahanl states that she freely kept company with men and allowed them in her presence as though she herself were a man.2" One may expect that her intimate access to ‘A’isha bint Abl Bakr combined with her readiness to mingle with men would have resulted in more prolific transmissions to a wider range of non-kin men. Yet, ‘A’isha bint Talha’s network with respect to the transmission of religious knowledge consists mostly of male kin." Moreover, ‘A’isha bint Talha is not remembered in any of the sources as a faqlba, and only a few men seem to have sought her reports. ‘A’isha’s profile signals a transitional milieu that afforded new opportunities for women’s intellectual engagement. Her activities as a belletrist indicate that by the early second/eighth century, some elite women’s education encompassed more than rudimentary religious learning. These developments are amply evidenced in the ‘Abbasid historiographical tradition and provide the backdrop for the rich lore related to caliphs such as Harun al-Rashid (r. 170-93/786-809) and his court. What is striking about ‘A’isha’s record is that her influence extended beyond literary circles to encompass the transmission of reports. The discrepancy in the reputations of ‘Amra and ‘A’isha bint Talha underscores that the women associated with ‘A’isha bint Abi Bakr were not a monolithic group. Rather, each woman’s unique characteristics and talents are reflected in their hadith transmission activity as well as in other genres of historical writing. 11 Abu al-Faraj al-Isbahanl, al-Agham, 11:165. See also Ibn ‘Asakir, Ta’rikh Dimashq, 69:253. There are several such references in al-Aghani and the Ta’rikh Dimashq to her behavior with men. 23 Her nephews Talha b. Yahya b. Talha (d. ca. 148/765f.; for his biography, see Ibn Hajar, Tahdhib , 5:26-27) and Mu‘awiya b. Ishaq b. Talha (death date unknown; for his biography, see ibid., 10:184), predominate in her chains of transmission. Even the supplementary information from biographical collections does not significantly change the picture of her transmission activity. Al-MizzI, for example, knows her as an authority only for ‘A’isha bint Abl Bakr’s traditions, and he adds two students to the list compiled from the isnads. They are ‘Abd Allah b. Yasar (I could not identify the ‘Abd Allah b. Yasar to whom alMizzi is referring in ‘A’isha bint Talha’s entry), and Yusuf b. Mahak (d. ca. 113/731; for his biography, see Ibn Hajar, Tahdhib, 11:368).