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The roles of Greek women through gender
The roles of Greek women through gender
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“As regards the sexes, the male is by nature superior and the female inferior, the male ruler and the female subject” – Aristotle
The world that is exists today is far different than that of Aristotle’s. In just the past year, America saw its first female presidential candidate nearly win the election, the first African American woman become the most decorated gymnast of all time, and the United States Treasury’s announcement of Harriet Tubman’s face being put on the twenty dollar bill. But was it always this way? When looking back to the time period of the Ancient World, the answer to this question is very clear. Though women have a very different, extraordinary, elevated position today, the role of women in the ancient world was not the
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In different cultures, this role took diverse forms, but generally, it had the same characteristics. From the very beginning at birth, females were the under the control of their male guardian, often their father or appropriate male relative. Marriage was inevitable and not decided by them, but rather for them, and it was often sooner rather than later. Most girls were married off between the ages of twelve and eighteen and often to a man twice their age (pg. 93). The details of a dowry, or payment, were arranged by the male guardian. The age difference, circumstances surrounding the arrangement, potential blood ties to the spouse and lack of input from the girl greatly affected the dynamic of the marriage. Most of all, the highest calling (and, in most men’s eyes during that era, their only calling) of a woman was to bear children – especially sons – for her husband, family, and …show more content…
An appalling but normalized characteristic of Greek society was the open nature Greek husbands went outside of the home for sexual gratification. Meanwhile, “respectable” wives were expected to stay home to raise their children, manage the household, and perhaps take up artistic, feminine hobbies that would benefit others. Divorce was incredibly difficult to attain and was only possible with the support of a male relative. Even if divorce occurred, the returned dowry was not put back in the control of the woman, but into the hands of her male guardian. One area of Greek culture that women were able to participate and play a part in was religion; women were expected to be present for various “rituals and festivals of the state religion.” (94) Other than that one exception, Greek wives were expected to be “at home out of sight, quiet, and
In learning about the feminist movement, we studied the three articles and discussed and reviewed the different authors perspectives on the topic and learned how important the role of woman in Greek Mythology. In presenting the feminist theory to the class we analyzed the three articles, Women in Ancient Greece; Women in Antiquity: New Assessments; and Women in Greek Myth, and discussed how although the three articles provided different views on Feminism in mythology, they all essentially are aiming to teach the same basic concept.
For the Greeks, Homer's Odyssey was much more than just an entertaining tale of gods, monsters, and men, it served as cultural paradigm from which every important role and relationship could be defined. This book, much more so than its counter part The Iliad, gives an eclectic view of the Achean's peacetime civilization. Through Odyssey, we gain an understanding of what is proper or improper in relationships between father and son, god and mortal, servant and master, guest and host, and--importantly--man and woman. Women play a vital role in the movement of this narrative. Unlike in The Iliad, where they are chiefly prizes to be won, bereft of identity, the women of Odyssey are unique in their personality, intentions, and relationship towards men. 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.
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 the Greek society women were treated very differently than they are today. Women in ancient Greece were not allowed to own property, participate in politics, and they were under control of the man in their lives. The goddess Aphrodite did not adhere to these social norms and thus the reason the earthly women must comply with the societal structure that was set before them. Aphrodite did not have a father figure according to Hesiod, and therefore did not have a man in her life to tell her what to do. She was a serial adulteress and has many children with many men other than her husband. She was not the only goddess from the ancient Greek myths to cause doubt in the minds of men. Gaia and the Titan Rhea rise up against their husbands in order to protect their children. Pandora, another woman in the Greek myths, shows that all evil comes from woman. Aphrodite, Gaia, Rhea, and Pandora cause the ancient Greek men to be suspicious of women because of her mischievous and wild behavior.
According to research, the role of women in classical Greece was extremely limited. Men and women were segregated all over in the Greek society, even in the home (Source 9). Women were secluded in their homes to the point of not being able to leave their own quarters except on special religious occasions or as necessity dictated (Source 10). All women were tightly controlled and confined to the home to insure that their husbands were provided legitimate male heirs. Beyond this, women had no true value (Source 6). Clearly, male domination in Greek society was like enslavement to women. A marriage contract dated 92 B.C. can be located in Women's Life in Greece & Rome by Mary R. Lefkowitz and Maureen B. Fant which defines unacceptable behavior within the union of marriage. The document requires that both husband and wife be chaste within the context of the household, but although nothing prevents ...
of the book. USA: Simon and Schuster, Inc. 2000. The.. Print. The.. Blundell, Sue. Women in Ancient Greece.
Henrik Ibsen once said, “A woman cannot be herself in the society of the present day, which is an exclusively masculine society, with laws framed by men and with a judicial system that judges feminine conduct from a masculine point of view.”(Notable Quotes) Ibsen’s statement exemplifies what life was like for women during ancient times. In many of the organized ancient civilizations, it was very common to find a primarily patriarchal civilization in government as well as in society. The causing factors can be attributed to different reasons, the main being the Neolithic Revolution and the new found dependence on manpower it caused. As a result of this, a woman found herself to be placed into an entirely different view in the eye of society. In comparison to the early Paleolithic matriarchal societies, the kinds of changes that came about for women due to the introduction of agriculture are shocking. Since the beginnings of the Neolithic era, the role and rights of women in many ancient civilizations began to become limited and discriminatory as a result of their gender.
Greek women, as depicted as in their history and literature, endure many hardships and struggle to establish a meaningful status in their society. In the Odyssey, Penelope’s only role in the epic is to support Odysseus and remain loyal to him. She is at home and struggles to keep her family intact while Odysseus is away trying to return to his native land. The cultural role of women is depicted as being supportive of man and nothing more. Yet what women in ancient Greece did long ago was by far more impressive than what men did.
Both Greco-Roman and Islamic societies were extremely similar in terms of applied patriarchy, but held large differences in terms of the ways that women were treated and the trends that affected gender roles in their cultures. In both cultures, women are generally considered inferior to men. However, there are rare occasions where women gained influence and notoriety. In both Greco-Roman and Islamic societies, women occasionally found ways to exert power on the world around them, despite the patriarchal attitude of society.
It is important to note that in Ancient Greek society the images of men and women were determined by their relation to Oikos. Shaw explains the Greek concept of Oikos as “a home in the fullest sense and more. It was a self-contained universe, shut off from the outside world, whose primary functions were to produce the necessaries of life, care for its aged, raise the next generation, and care for its dead ancestors” (Shaw). Given that the everyday function of the average Greek woman was primarily inside the home, we can conclude that the wife’s attributes were those demanded by the Oikos, these being: industry, motherly love, and the ability to create harmony. Michael Shaw notes that there were certain negative traits as well: being that she “will not normally be known in public, because this implies that something is wrong inside the house which is driving her outside” (Shaw). Shaw also explains that she will be obedient due to the fact that they majority of decisions involve the outside world in...
Ancient Greek mythology has made its way into public conscience and knowledge. So much so that any person on the street would be able to name at least one deity from their pantheon. From this public knowledge, much is known about the religions including its stories and mythologies. But less is known about a person’s role in Ancient Greek religion and even less about a woman roles in their religion. What roles the Ancient Greek people did play can be gathered from the Greek stories and myths. But more specifically what roles did Ancient Greek women play in their religion. The Ancient Greek myths and stories tell of priestess and women who remained virgins as a way of worshipping their gods. But more questions come from these, why did these women become priestess and what rituals did they perform? Both the reasons behind these motives and the process one goes through to become a priestess must be explored to better a woman’s role in Ancient Greek religion.
In addition to age, gender is one of the universal dimensions on which status differences are based. Unlike sex, which is a biological concept, gender is a social construct specifying the socially and culturally prescribed roles that men and women are to follow. Women have always had lower status than men, but the extent of the gap between the sexes varies across cultures and time.
Since the beginning of time, women throughout the histоry of mаnkind have been relеgаted fаr аway from social life and Greece wаs nоt an exclusiоn. Women could not own any property, with the exception of their clothes, jewellery and their own slaves; the dowry, because it was in total control of husband and belong to him; and enter into any translation. Also, even thought women had right to be a citizen of Athems, but only for purpose of marriage and procreation.
Women in antiquity did not have an easy lot in life. They had few, if any, rights. Surviving early records of the civilizations of antiquity from ancient Greece, Egypt, China, and Rome suggest the diversity of women’s roles differed little from region to region. There were a few exceptions, mostly concerning women of nobility and the city-state of Sparta. Excluding the rare instances mentioned most antique women were generally limited on education, mobility, and almost all possibilities interfering with domestic or childbearing responsibilities. The limited social roles of women in antiquity suggest the perceived c...
The common view in ancient societies were often that this was a world of men; that women were inferior. There’s often debate on the role of women in society, but in reality, women play an important role in any type of society, whether it be good or bad. Every society in history have different views and representations of women. In ancient Greece, China, and the Roman Empire, women were seen as inferior to men. They struggled in the aspects of marriage, social life, and education. Although most of these ancient cultures viewed women similarly, of these three locations, it seems as though women in the Roman Empire had it best.