Episode 1 Depicting Violence
In this scene in Lysistrata, set in ancient Greece, Lysistrata initiates a sexual strike against men in order to end war. There is ample evidence of not only Lysistrata exhibiting both kinds of courage but other women as well. There are a number of obstacles that threaten to derail the wives’ strike before it is even fully set out upon. The most persistent one is the women’s own hunger for sex, already badly malnourished as they are by the never-ending war. While this is the hurdle to which Aristophanes returns to the most often (because it’s funny and this is a comedy), it is not the most dire in terms of consequences. Lysistrata says, “Just imagine: we’re at home, beautifully made up, wearing our sheerest lawn negligees and Nothing underneath…and the men are all like ramrods and can’t wait to leap into bed, and then we’ll absolutely refuse—that’ll make them make peace soon enough, you’ll see” (II.1. 45-48).
The play goes on to describe the many things that could occur should these women refuse their husbands sex, and the violent nature that their men could exhibit. There is no disputing that Aristophanes’ dialogue here is very funny. There is also no disputing that anyone of those things could happen to a Greek woman if she refused to fulfill her wifely duties, whether domestic or carnal. The threat of social retribution and physical violence is real. Fitting in with the tone of the play, however, the men’s response to their wives’ abandonment of them is mostly one of confusion and helplessness.
Episode 2 Depicting Violence
The failings of the male leadership of Athens are tried and found wanting in the play. Lysistrata reproaches the elders of Athens with eloquent words that threaten and poin...
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... Helena. Conclusively, the woods inhabited by fairies serve to contrast with the well-organized Athenian court.
However, the woods are not entirely benevolent and “dream-like”. Away from familiarity, Demetrius recognizes the danger in the "ill counsel of a desert place" (Act 11. 1 218). The lover’s quarrels and confusions later are also set in a wooded area which is similarly dark and disorderly. They are manipulated, "Bedabbled with the dew, and torn with briers", before being awakened to reality. Here, the woods become a place where the inner thoughts of the characters are allowed to surface, with troubling implications. The wood is a place of freedom as opposed to the constraints of the law of society, where one can break the rigidity of concentration of the city life. It is a place of fun (break of rigidity) but also a dangerous place because of its darkness.
Aristophanes was not a proponent of the majority of Athenian culture, as well as other aspects of Greek life as whole. He despised the political, educational, and societal views that remained persistent throughout Athens. While his plays may be comedies, he uses them in an assortment of ways. His plays are used to demonstrate a purpose far beyond that of entertainment. He uses his writing for voicing the problems that lie in Ancient culture. Aristophanes uses each play to reveal certain issues that
Lysistrata is a bawdy play written by the comic playwright from ancient Athens, Aristophanes. This age-old comedy details the quest of one Athenian woman’s crusade to put an end to the incessant Peloponnesian War. As a method of non-violent resistance, Lysistrata, along with other women who hail from Athens and other warring states, capitalize on their sexuality. In a male-dominated society, the deprival of sexual privileges by these women render their husbands and lovers powerless. In an attempt
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Over the course of history, the societal roles of both men and women have changed with the times. The play Lysistrata, written by Aristophanes, gives the reader a glimpse of what life was like in Ancient Greece during the Peloponnesian war. The war was fought between Athens and Sparta with their respective allies, (however Aristophanes’s play provides humour about gender, sex and war). Throughout the play, women play a unique role in that they are presented as people who are involved with politics
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Aristophanes’ Greek comedy, Lysistrata has been translated many times. The key to a good translation is finding one that models what the current time frame is looking for. What would a student attending college in the year 1912, think of the translation used in our 2011 literature class? What about the choices of a literature professor, in the year 1925, when teaching this play? The tone and speech of these translations can be very different, yet mean the same thing. Lysistrata has been altered
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Rayan Itani CLAS 1110.U12 Professor Timothy Hanford May 12, 2016 In Aeschylus’ Libation Bearers, Thucydides’ History of the Peloponnesian War and Aristophanes’ Lysistrata contained strong Leadership and commitment to their fellow citizens. Each one of these works had a different view on issues which affected them during that time. Common motifs, themes and events had occurred; however some differ within these works. Leadership was considered power and strength at that time, all
early portions of mainstream ancient and classical European history. Prominent Greek writers such as Thucydides, Homer, and Aristophanes produced pieces that are regarded, up to this day, as af conveyer of Greek life in the context of classical Europe. Looking deeper into their respective works, Thucydides’ History of the Peloponnesian War, Homer’s Iliad and Aristophanes’ Lysistrata all show a common theme in ancient Greek life –life in the context of war. This paper will conduct textual analysis of
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Lysistrata is a satire written by Aristophanes that takes place during the Peleponesian War, which was unpopular amongst the citizens of Greece. Consequently the unpopularity motivated Aristophanes to write a satirical play that mocks the war by telling the story of the women of Greece who are in an uproar for the reason being they argue they are the collectors of the burden the war has brought on. Aristophanes uses situational as well as Socratic irony to deliver his thoughts of the war through