Roles Of Women In Ancient Greek Society

s history runs its’ course, there are certain topics that are always addressed such as religion, politics, and societal structure. Also brought up is the role of women. During all periods of the world, women are given their own category due to being treated differently than the men. Comparing the women of ancient Greece, Rome, and Egypt reveals the vast differences of people’s views of women and the disappointing similarities of being unjustly judged based on their gender. Each of these cultures puts their women into positions that are degrade the skills of females, some more than others, and create the societal barriers for women that last for many years after ancient times.

The Greek and Roman societies were a very patriarchal society. This is reflected throughout the myths in classical mythology. By looking at the many pieces of literature involving Greeks and Romans we will see that the roles women portrayed are very different from women’s roles in today’s society. Although there are a few similarities to women’s roles in today’s society, their roles are more like those women in the past. We can see this by looking at the qualities of Greek and Roman female gods and looking at the roles women play in the myths.

The Roman woman had a very limited role and they could not attend, speak in, or vote at political meetings. Women were not allowed to hold any position of political responsibility. They were not allowed to voice their opinion in public but in the Greek society, the woman was considered just like an object.

This investigation will answer the question “What were the differences and similarities of the roles of women in Athens and Sparta?” This question is relevant due to the fact that the role of women and how they were treated back then are very different than today and we’ve come a long way since then in terms of women’s rights. It’s also important to see the drastic differences between the roles of women from one Greek city to another. The issues that will be addressed are their treatment and roles within societies and how they differ from the Greek towns Athens and Sparta. The places investigated will include Athens and Sparta. This will be accomplished through an examination of books, websites, and academic journals.

If the men of Ancient Greece was not training in the military or talking about politics they were going to theater going to watch dramas or comedies these were some form of gods women were not allowed to go or perform at theatre men would play women roles . Lives of the women of Ancient Greece did work around the house cooking,cleaning ,weaving and other domestic duties the women were not allowed to be in politics or public life they lived in the house although they had one public was acting as a priestess at a temple . The children of Ancient Greece usually occupied their time with playing games and playing with toys.

The roles of Athens women were primarily wife and mother. The patriarchal society of Athenians selected models of women depends on the divine order and heroic orders. Other women demonstrated the vices of women who reflect what the Greek female should not be. The roles of women in the fifth and fourth centuries are complicated to ascertain. However, in classical Athens, women played tow good roles which were those of wives and mothers. Also, women played bad roles which were those of lovers, rebels and witches.

Ancient times have a lost list of feminine roles and conduct to fit those roles. Ancient Greece was known as a patriarchal society in which women had little rights personally and legally. Women were subject to acts of seclusion as they needed

Women in Ancient Greek and Roman history are easily overlooked, whether that be though art, poetry, or mythology. Mythology is extremely popularized throughout all of Greek history, leaving domestic life in the shadows for the most part. The fascination with beings possessing special powers and abilities, like going to and from the underworld or wielding lightning bolts, compared to everyday women’s domestic life it is a slightly boring topic. Women’s history in many different cultures has a minor amount of information recorded, no matter the form of record keeping, compared to men. Men typically had more interesting roles in daily life, for example; craftsmen, soldiers, senators, or even emperors. However, domestic life for women was not

When looking at the roles of women in Spartan and Athenian culture it is important to understand the societies that they lived in. By going to an general idea of Spartan and Athenian culture one can see how women were treated and viewed. Then in return contrast the difference of what rights and opportunities were entitled to the women of Sparta and Athens. Studying the role of women is no different then when studying men simply identity their rights, opportunities, and views. Once these rights, opportunities, and views had been highlighted and explained there will be a more detailed contrast of these women.

Women of Ancient Greece had few freedoms and limited rights. Statuses and women’s placement in the hierarchy were dependent on their husbands and number of births. They were kept under the control of their husbands, fathers, and brother and had little power in politics. Women also had few social interactions and were kept in the house to tend to the children as well as spin and weave. Only mistresses and prostitutes were given larger freedom in terms of social interaction, not totally under

In ancient Greek society women were valued in one form or another, although this varied from one region to another. Throughout time women in Greece held many different roles. They were wives, prizes to be won, mothers, daughters, etc. Since there is little historical documentation from this time period we must analyze authors such as Hesiod, Homer, Plutarch, and Sappho as primary sources.

A female’s education in Sparta consisted of a lot of physical exercise because being fit and healthy was very important in this civilization.9 In Athens on the other hand a girl’s education was only at home and they were taught how to do tasks that the mother in the family does like cooking and sewing. Girls in Athens were only taught the basics in taking care of the home. Even though Sparta offered girls education ancient Rome valued education more than Greece as a whole

These women were able to buy the basic necessities that her and her family needed. Women in this class could work as merchants which were a very good pay during the time period of 330-326 BC because the empire expanded due to Alexander the Great’s conquers. Goods were imported from all over which was a great change for the economy. They could also sell things themselves. Most women were taught how to sew to make clothing and how to farm.

Many of the historical sources from this ancient world have been lost or destroyed by time and war. But thanks to sources such a Sappho 's poetry and the image of women as strong and central characters through many of the greek epics as evidence, we are able to draw some conclusions as to the life of woman in Ancient Greek world. From what we know of the classical greek culture, women were most often subservient to men throughout their lives; first to their fathers and brothers, then to their husbands and sons. Although, the role of women often differed between city-states and through the ranks of social standing and class.

Women were viewed as simply a caregiver, and it was their duty to bear children while being bound to their homes. Although marriage and a woman’s spouse was arguably the most important aspect of their life, women had no say in whom it was that they were married to. This same trend is common in most of the other important decisions in a woman’s life during this time period. Women had no authority whatsoever and played a very demeaning role as opposed to their male counterparts. Men in ancient Greece were superior figures and had power over almost every societal aspect such as politics and property. Due to the fact in this time period, women were constantly objectified by men, the thought of women displaying feminist attitudes by being independent or taking charge would strongly challenge the attitude of women having a submissive role in ancient