Nabaun Noor
HIS 204
Professor Bostwick
February 14, 2018
Homework # 1
Compare and contrast how Procopius presents Theodora in “How Theodora most depraved …” to how he presents Theodora in “Theodora of Constantinople”.
Procopius wrote about Theodora, who was Justinian’s wife and also empress to Rome. He talks about Theodora’s controversial past promiscuous habits and her role as an emperor throughout both of the article. She was a daughter of a bear trainer who won the love of Emperor Justinian of Constantinople. She became one of the more powerful rulers that controlled the Byzantine empire. In Article 1, he graphically describes the sexual behavior of Theodora in her young lowly upbringing. When she used to work in the circus as
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Theodora would also "with inviting jests and a comic flaunting of her skirts herself..,”( Line 9) tempted all the men and mostly young boys. Theodora made a name for herself by stripping off her clothes as far as the law allowed, for complete nudity was banned, “ she removed her costume and stood nude in their midst, except for a girdle about the groin.” ( Line 12) Theodora worked as a prostitute in a house of ill-repute overhauling low-status customers, that she would engage in entertaining with 10 young men or more in a single night. It was said that she “gave her youth to anyone she met, in utter abandonment.”( Line …show more content…
He further goes on describing Theodora's role as empress and her influence on Justinian. Procopius’s viewpoint regarding Theodora differs in this article. In his “ The History of the wars of Justinian,” we see that how Theodora soon demonstrated what she was made amid what came to be known as the 'Nika' riots. A riot began in the Hippodrome amid a chariot race. The agitators had numerous grievances, some of which originated from Justinian and Theodora's own particular activities. The rioters have set numerous buildings on fire. Unable to control the protestors, Justinian and his authorities proposing escaping the legislative center yet Theodora announced that she would not escape. She called attention to the centrality of dying as a ruler as opposed to living in a state of banishment or covering up. She broadly proclaimed that 'purple is a fair winding sheet.' Hearing her speech, Justinian requested his troops to storm the Hippodrome, having to execute 30,000. After his triumph, Justinian gave Theodora genuine power, making her his co-ruler and the most powerful lady in the Byzantine Empire. He always remembered that because of her his empire was saved. Theodora turned into Justinian's right hand, and his
Theodora’s story starts with a distinctive start. Her father was a bear trainer that worked in the Hippodrome in Constantinople and she grew up in the entertainment spotlight (Craig/Graham/Kagan/Ozment /Turner, 355, 2009). She was a mime and when she was older, she became an actress (Koeller, 1996). So, she not only lived in a circus, she also became a child star. Who would not want her childhood? But, back in that day, an actress was not a highly looked upon career for a women, therefore the term ‘actress’ was interchanged with ‘prostitute’ (Koeller, 1996). So, it might not have been the best...
The birth of an eastern circus woman attracted no attention at all in mid-millennium year 500. No one could ever imagine that this baby would grow up to be one of the most remarkable women in history of the World. She was the daughter of the bear keeper, a public performer,wife of Justinian, Empress of the Byzantine Empire and a natural beauty whose name became the one name in the voluminous annals of the Byzantine empire known to almost everyone; Theodora. Once the former show girl settled down to respectable married life, she touched every branch of life in the Empire. She had her finger on everything including military campaigns, architectural developments, and government policy and law reforms. With her intelligence and charm and her indomitable willpower she became the backbone of Justinian by being the partner in power. Her supremacy and authority over Justinian and her role in the empire made her a significant woman in the history and the empress of one of the great civilizations of the world. She brought Justinian a stabilizing influence and helped him shaped his policies and became the foreground of every picture of the period. For all the long series of masterful empresses none is as astonishing and stunning as the consort of Justinian. This essay will analyze the dynamic of the marriage between Justinian and Theodora and it will argue the importance of this marriage for the strength of the Byzantine Empire.
Although Phillis?s poetry was well received throughout New England, there were people who did not believe all of the poetry was actually written by Phillis. Her expertise with the heroic couplet form perfected by her literary hero Alexander Pope and the allusions to classic Greek and English poetry caused the speculation. In order to prove the validity of her poetry, Joh...
Undoubtedly Artemisia made a big effort to rehabilitate from the story of the rape through a combined marriage, but especially through her career. Unfortunately, the episode clouded part of the artistic achievements of Artemisia, who was long considered a “curiosity...
“Such was the tale told me by the priests concerning the arrival of Helen at the court of Proteus. It seems to me that Homer was acquainted with this story , and while disregarding it , because he thought it less adapted for heroic poe...
Yet, despite the fact that no two women in this epic are alike, each—through her vices or virtues—helps to delineate the role of the ideal woman. Below, we will show the importance of Circe, Calypso, Nausicaa, Clytaemestra, and Penelope in terms of the movement of the narrative and in defining social roles for the Ancient Greeks. Before we delve into the traits of individual characters, it is important to understand certain assumptions about women that prevailed in the Homeric Age. By modern standards, the Ancient Greeks would be considered a rabidly misogynistic culture. Indeed, the notoriously sour Boetian playwright Hesiod-- who wrote about fifty years before Homer-- proclaimed "Zeus who thunders on high made women to be evil to mortal men, with a nature to do evil (Theogony 600).
...n. Similarly the method by which Mycerinus meets his end in Herodotus is one which is reserved for despotic royalty throughout Histories. Given this, it must be considered that the tale of King Mycerinus contains a large proportion of Herodotean invention or modification. Even the alternative tale of the death of Mycerinus’ daughter which is dismissed so readily concerning the amputated statues has a Herodotean ring to it. Whilst some historians have seen the entire section dealing with Mycerinus as fictitious the fact that Herodotus describes festivals that do exist accurately but misinterprets them wildly means that it is difficult to abandon all faith in his accounts. In common with much modern historiographic meta-fiction it appears that Herodotus might have used ‘real’ backdrops with ‘real’ historical figures as a basis for what amounts to a fictional story.
2. Procopius starts this document stating that Theodora is nothing more than a prostitute. He goes on to say that she was not of class or had any dignity, because she would perform on stage almost completely nude. Procopius portrays her as someone who is ruthless and will do whatever she needs to do to accomplish her goals. Justinian would fall in love with her, but was not allowed to marry her because of his social status, because
This paper will discuss the well published work of, Pomeroy, Sarah B. Goddesses, Whores, Wives, and Slaves: Women in Classical Antiquity. New York: Schocken, 1975. Print. Sarah B. Pomerory uses this book to educate others about the role women have played throughout ancient history. Pomerory uses a timeline to go through each role, starting with mythological women, who were called Goddesses. She then talks about some common roles, the whores, wives, and slaves during this time. Pomerory enlightens the audience on the topic of women, who were seen as nothing at the time. Men were seen as the only crucial part in history; however, Pomerory’s focus on women portrays the era in a new light.
In Titus Livius’, The Early History of Rome, Livy takes on the task of documenting Rome’s early history and some of the famous individuals who help contribute to the ‘greatness’ of Rome. Livy dedicates an entire portion of his writing to describe the reigns of the first seven kings of Rome; all who influence the formation and governance of Rome in some way. However, of the seven kings in early Roman history, King Romulus and King Numa Pompilius achieved godlike worship and high esteem from their fellow Romans. While both highly important and respected figures in Rome’s history, the personalities and achievements of King Romulus and King Numa Pompilius are complete opposites of one another. Despite the differences found in each king and of their rule over Rome, both Romulus and Numa Pompilius have a tremendous influence in the prosperity and expansion of Rome in its early days.
MacKay, L. A. "The Person of Penelope." Greece & Rome 2nd ser. 5.2 (1958): 123-27. JSTOR. Web. .
Although Thomasina is incredibly intelligent, this knowledge does not hinder her level of maturity. This shows us that Thomasina’s age in relation to her maturity and knowledge do not have a direct correlation. Maturity usually develops with age and experience, whereas knowledge can be innate or can be built with hard work and dedication. The reader sees her immaturity on page 77, directly in relation to the naked body and sexual preferences.
He would make the all the decisions in the family, and made the rules and standards, including the moral standards that women were expected to follow. Ideal Roman women were valued for their piety, modesty, performance of womanly duties, and faithfulness to their husbands. In both their stories, Lucretia and Dido do what is necessary to maintain their image of the ideal Roman woman. The story of Lucretia begins with men boasting about their wives, trying to determine who is the best of them all. It is clear to them that Lucretia is the winner when she is found “hard at work by the lamplight upon her spinning” (Livy, 100).
With two drastically different relationships with their spouses, analysis of Portia and Calpurnia’s relationships and care for their husbands leads one to see that Portia is the more admirable and redeeming character. Although both couples equally loved each other, the ways in which they reacted and influenced each other differed greatly.
These images are particularly evident when she performs on stage and when she attempts to defend herself and her life choices to the audience. The idea that the three texts referenced, in this paper, is the idea that Helen is her own person with her own morals and opinions. The fact that she is a stripper doesn’t make her any different from anyone else; she still has dreams and ambitions. She isn’t exploited by anyone but herself and she has full control of that. When Helen is on stage she shows full control of herself and the men who come to watch her exotic dancing. She controls herself because she forces herself to do this loathsome job. She controls the men through her dancing, just like the legendary Helen of Troy, she is a goddess of beauty and negatively influences these men to leave their wives and come watch her on stage. She controls them with desire. She contains a mysterious air about herself and the men are intrigued by it. They come so that she may fulfill them with the desire and the satisfaction their lives are lacking. Everybody tells her to get a real job meaning get a job with some self-respect. Yet Helen doesn’t want to; she enjoys exploiting herself, the money that comes with it and the feeling of being a goddess wanted by many. In fact she feels bad for those who don’t get to do her job; those who don’t get to feel what it’s like to be a