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The roles of women in greek religion
The roles of women in greek religion
The roles of women in greek religion
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Research Paper: Role of Women in Greek Mythology
In my readings I have discovered that women in ancient Greece played a big role in society. Unlike many other societies, women were able to play an important role in things like religion and politics and were viewed as valued members of society. This is something that’s very uncommon in early Western civilization, as women were mainly oppressed throughout most of our history. As I continued my research on the role of women in Ancient Greek civilization, I found that many of their predominant mythological figures are also strong women. Women played a big role in Greek religion and they were worshiped no less than male figures. Many of the Greek goddesses are depicted as strong, powerful and yet still feminine figures. A few examples of their strength and intelligence are depicted in the stories of Hera, Athena, and more. Each of these female goddesses are considered key parts of Greek mythology and have clearly made an impact on how Greeks view women in their society. I believe that it is particularly because of how important the goddesses were to Greek mythology that women were able to be such key parts of Greek society as a whole.
According to Goddesses, Whores, Wives and Slaves: Women in Classical Antiquity by Sarah B. Pomeroy girls in ancient Greece were taught to be physically strong. They took part in many physical activities like sports along with boys. Pomeroy also states that women played a big role in religious festivals (Pomeroy). “Spartan women were put through physical training… They could own their own land (as much as 40% of Spartan land in the fourth century BC was owned by women). Sayings of Spartan women were collected and became the essence of the Sp...
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... fully naked statue of the goddess Aphrodite was created at the very beginning of the Hellenistic age- and, increasingly, rulers in their won right” (Scott). The Greek goddesses and their portrayal in Greek mythology set a standard in which Greek women followed, to do their best to be equals to men and now allow themselves to feel oppressed.
In conclusion, religion played a very prominent role in the empowerment of women in Ancient Greece. Thanks to the beautiful portrayal of women in Greek mythology, the women of Greece were respected and had the ability to affect change in their society. The stories of Hera, Athena Odysseus, and Circe have all helped shape the structure of women in Greek society. Each of story showing a different face of women, all of them playing just as important parts in Greek worship and daily Greek life as their male counterparts.
In Ancient Greece, women had little to no freedom in their lives. For instance, they had no role in politics, leaving that completely to men, were expected to stay indoors for the majority of their lives doing household work because they were under the control of a male relative, usually being their father or husband, and they were not allowed to study medicine. These standards were set by great writers such as Aristotle who wrote of women being inferior to men. He believed women were more emotional, which is why they would be useless in politics, and they were more deceptive and mischievous. Because only men were doctors, many women were dying during childbirth due to the fact that they felt uncomfortable about having a man handle their pregnancy.
The Role of Women in Greek Mythology In learning about the feminist movement, we studied the three articles, discussed and reviewed the different authors perspectives on the topic, and learned how important the role of woman in Greek mythology is. 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. In order to understand the feminist theory, we have to understand the notion that although myths are invented and that they involve fantasy, the concept of mythology does not necessarily imply that there is no truth of history in them. Some of the humans may have lived while some of the events may have taken place. Most importantly, the social customs and the way of life depicted in the myths are a valuable representation of Greek society.
As a child, I was fascinated by Greek mythology and history, and I made it my business in elementary school to read as much as possible about the subject, including the outstanding stories and the pantheon of gods presented. I thought of them as fantastic, supernatural tales with fitful gods and brave heroes, and I never stopped to consider that the mythologies could be representative of the cultural views and habits of the Greeks, specifically regarding gender roles. One such representaton is Virgil's epic Aeneid, which contains depictions of women in positions of power, and also characterizes these women as irrational, emotional to the point of hysteria, and consequently, unfit rulers.
Greek life in most people’s eyes is considered to be joining a sisterhood or brotherhood such as a sorority or a fraternity. Greek life is an extremely large part in numerous universities. More than half of the students are actually members of a Greek organization. Some may say that Greek life is not for them, but they truly do not know all of the advantages that come from being a member of a Greek organization. Do they realize how several of our nation’s leaders were members of Greek life probably not, since most of them were? One should join Greek life, not only for abundant friendships gained, but because of advantages, for example leadership skills and along with the countless networking
Athena demonstrated feminine superiority in Odysseus’s adventure. Known for her cunning, strategy, and wisdom, traits that are usually given to men, she was treated with respect and spoken about in admiration by everyone. Perhaps this was only because she is a goddess, but she had control over Odysseus and other men in a way no woman had. While in the mortal world women depend on the men’s opinion of them, the men depended on Athena’s guidance for their own welfare.
These three goddesses represent three different types of women in Greek society. Sarah Pomeroy, author of Goddesses, Whores, Wives, and Slaves, believed that “the goddesses are archetypal images of human females, as envisioned by males” (8). Pomeroy understands the significance of the differences between Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite, and what those differences meant for the women of Greece who were required to follow three important rules. The first rule was for the women to live a life of domesticity and motherhood. This was very important to the men in the society.
Roman mythology applies to the religious system, and origins of ancient Rome. These attributes are found through the art and literature that the Romans provide. Although, the Romans have supernatural elements they still proceeded to treat their traditional stories historically. The Romans focused on how a person contributes to the Roman community, and merely concentrate on politics and morality. Catholicism is one of the most common known religions. Catholicism focuses on the traditions, and values of the Christian churches. The two main things that differentiate Roman mythology, and modern day catholicism is their: beliefs and religion.
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.
Women in ancient Greece are an interesting subject and only so much is known about the exact day to day lives of them however from what records remain it would seem that they were kept at a relatively low level on the social hierarchy. Even in Pericles ' Funeral Speech which seems to be an almost utopian discretion of aspects of Greek life Pericles himself states that “Great will be your glory in not falling short of your natural character; and greatest will be hers who is least talked of among the men whether for good or for bad.” Pericles states that the greatest of women should be the ones whom are not noticed but still preform there tasks while not catching the attention of men. Adding to this even the great philosopher Aristotle bags on the women of Greece simply by stating that ”female [souls are] inoperative” With this simple statement Aristotle makes it seem that women are somehow broken and can never live up to the same standards as men. Even Xenophon, The Economist rambles on...
Women in ancient Greek times did not have equal or political rights. Athena and Antigone, who were both very heroic women went above and beyond the stereotypical woman. In society today, women are still not looked as an equivalent to men. Athena and Antigone share the Greek heroic traits of honor, perseverance, and of living in a higher class. In Sophocles’ Greek tragedy, Antigone, and Homer’s epic, The Odyssey, the female characters, Antigone and Athena are not solely traditional female characters, instead, they embody the heroic characteristics, honor, perseverance, and high social standing.
Athena was the Greek Goddess of many ideas, but she was famous mostly for her superior wisdom, her cunning skills in times of war, and her implausible talent for household tasks, such as weaving and pottery. She was celebrated more than any other God in ancient mythology, was the supposed inventor of countless innovations, and her figure gave reason for Greek woman to gain rights long before others of their time. The goddess of war, the guardian of Athens, and the defender of Heroes; Athena’s impact on the lives of Ancient Greeks is outstanding.
Throughout the ancient world, religions and ideologies have developed into forms and practices that influence the very essence of civilizations. Religions could pose as a form of foundation for the beliefs, ideas, social organizations, and economic structures of a certain group of people. They provided a means of justification and form of unity between people and they helped establish and infuse new ideas into a culture. Religions were used as source to explain the misconcepted beliefs in nature and science as well as natural phenomina and it was also used to provide a source of motivation, control, and stability in a civilization.
The Ancient Greece civilization was very different in between female and male. Female and male had a unique role in the ancient Greece civilization. This civilization was under male control because only men possibly will be citizens and only highborn males benefit from a proper education. Men got instruction in military, involve in politics or went to the Theatre for amusement. The men observed dramas tragedies, or comedies that they were related to.
The position of women in Classical Athens has often been described as subordinate in comparison to men. Women were categorized in very particular ways: Athenian women were wives, while those who migrated to Athens from other city-states were slaves or prostitutes. Countless literature, from tragedy to comedy and political texts, reinforces the notion that citizen women were meant to serve their husbands within the confines of the oikos and produce legitimate sons in order to further the glory of men while non-Athenian women served their purpose towards men through sexual pleasure. While there may be partial truth to these views, Athenian women played a crucial role in the religious sphere. Religion was directly linked to civic identity and was a fundamental and sacred element of not only a city-state, but to Greece as a whole during the Classical period. Surviving documentation has demonstrated that Athenian women played a vital part to specific religious traditions, such as the participation in the festivals of Thesmophoria and Adonia. Furthermore, there exists evidence that proves women could also acquire the position of priestess for particular cults, a position that increased their reputation and status in a culture that considered them inferior. These marginalized women used religion as a way to carve out a sacred and protect space for themselves, using it to create a sense of freedom in their lives and to bridge the gap in equality between them and the dominant men.
Throughout all Greek myths, the gods were always created in the image of man. This shows how Greeks viewed men in a positive way and thought that they were more powerful and superior to women. In addition, they thought men and women are unequal and that men were given jobs that required more physical strength. Although women played a role in Greek myths, they were not as important as men. Women had a more easier and feminine jobs than men. In the Greek creation myth, we see Hades as the god of underworld and Aphrodite as the goddess of love. The difference between th...