Women changing From Hellenistic to Late Antiquity

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The world is constantly changing and evolving. In every society across the world, men and women have specific roles that they each carry out. During ancient times, in most western cultures, women were inferior to men. Women’s status seemed to change in a pattern that repeated it self from one time period to another. Gradually, the status of women did change from political standpoints of the societies. From political power to having the right last name, women have transformed and became a huge part of Western Civilization.

During times of Hellenic Greece, women were considered naturally weaker than men, squeamish, and unable to perform work requiring muscular or intellectual development. In most Hellenic societies, for example, domestic chores were delegated to women, leaving heavier labors, such as war and hunting, to men. Women also have generally had fewer legal rights and career opportunities than men. From the text from Kilshansky, The Spartan Constitution, Lycurgus believed that motherhood is the most important function of freeborn woman. Lycurgus then insisted on physical training of the females along with the males. Lycurgus also believed that to have future success is to have a strong youth. The Hellenic times were like this for the sole reason that few elite men ruled. With these men in control, it was made possible that no woman could ever have a say in the government of Sparta or the democracy of Athens.

When the Hellenistic Kingdoms started to spur, new opportunities for women appeared. Levack stated that, “Greek women in Egypt, as well as many other Hellenized land, enjoyed full citizenship and held religious offices.” This simply shows that the women of the middle class had new privileges, but what about the women...

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...though the wives or daughters of wealthy and powerful families could work with other women of society. For example Melania the Younger, the daughter of a wealthy roman senatorial family, decided to dispose her property. The senate, who, I might add, was all male, objected to the breaking up of Melanie’s family estates. Melania then appealed to the empress, a female leader, and the senate was overruled, allowing Melania to break up her estates. This is just one example of how political power can change the status of women dramatically.

Based on these facts on how women gradually promoted themselves into freedom, some factors clearly changed the way people viewed women in their societies. From having political power in the family to being persuasive in other areas of life, women came from being a housewife to a possible empress during the civilization of the west.

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