ATHENIAN WOMEN It is ridiculous to assume that the Athenian women of Ancient Greece were respected and revered by men. These women were not held in high regard. Men controlled all aspects of their lives, beginning with their fathers and continuing with their husbands once they married. Most girls were married in their very early teens to men that were usually much older (Xenophon’s Oeconomicus), sometimes as much as twice the age of their wives. The age difference was considered a moot point since
Athenian Women Athenian society was very dynamic in many areas while it was strict in regard to the treatment of women. Although Athenian women were protected by the state and did not know a different way of living, they were very stifled and restricted. The only exception was slaves, and heteria, prostitutes, and this was due to the fact that they had no male guardians. Since these women were on there own they had to take care of themselves, and therefore were independent. In a more recent
Women in classical Athens could not have had an extremely enjoyable experience, if we rely on literary sources concerning the roles of women within the Greek polis. The so-called Athenian democracy only benefited a fraction of the entire population. At least half of this population was female, yet women seem to have had very little influence and few official civic rights. `The position of women...is a subject which has provoked much controversy.' (Lacey: 1968, 151). Studies concerning the lives
treat women with the utmost respect. Unfortunately this was not the case. While a rich and cultured city, Athens of course had
Athenian Women’s Acquisition of Power through Relationships with Men Greek society held the belief that women had little common sense or logic; they had the natural tendency to move toward chaos and destruction. Women were thought to have the ability to destroy a man’s honor through their actions. Because of this, women were given no influence in the government of the polis or in their lives; they had no power. Instead, they were kept inside where they could be closely monitored by their husbands
Female Deception in Aristophanes The sly, deceptive nature of women in Ancient Greece is a prominent theme in the comic plays of Aristophanes. Like many other Grecian writers, his depiction of crimes committed by women slanders their reputation and reinforces the negative female stereotypes of the times. Yet when one looks at the issue through the eyes of the female characters in his plays, women’s deception appears to be not only natural, but even praiseworthy for its reliability and aide
In ancient Greece, men who died in war fulfilled the civic ideal to the utmost. The women, destined to live out a degrading life, died in bed. Certainly, not all men died in battle, but every epitaph shows in one way or another, the city would always remember the men who died in war. Additionally, not all Athenian women died in bed; nonetheless, it was left to her family to preserve the memory of her not the city. No matter how perfect a woman was she would never receive the same status or level
When learning about a subject, such as Athenian women, one’s first instinct is to look at a book concerning the subject. History books and other written material can be excellent primary sources. They can tell us a great deal about the Athenian Woman. Written material can show us how Athenian women lived and what their roles in society as well as the family were. However, there is also an alternative way to research Athenian women, and this way is through iconography. Iconography can be defined as
In encoint Griici, thiri wes uni dumonent coty-steti, ur Pulos es thi encoint Griiks cellid ot, end thos wes Athins. It wes e bieatofal sucoity thet injuyid ert end lotiretari viry mach end velaid thongs loki whuliniss end ixcillinci. Huwivir, uni thong thi Athinoens dod nut velai wes wumin. Thiy wiri diimid onfirour by min, end trietid muri es e dicuretoun rethir then e hamen biong. Athinoen wumin spint must uf thior lovis on thior humi anliss thiy wiri puur end hed tu hilp thi hasbend woth wurk
document, I’m going to write about women in Sparta and Athens. I realized, they are similar as well as different in several ways. Also, I’m going to study Plutarch’s account of Spartan women in which he supports or doesn’t support the textbook’s presentation; in addition, I’m going to present my opinion of Plutarch’s ideas. And I’m going to talk about any similarities between women then and today. Spartan women and Athenian women had many differences. While Spartan women were able to do multiple activities