The mythical tribe of warrior women known as Amazons had a prominent presence in the mythic world of Ancient Greece. They are often depicted in ancient literature, such as in Herodotus’ The Histories, or on many artistic vessels recovered from the centuries between 800 B.C.E and 500 B.C.E. Most people envision the Amazons as the female fighters who defied the role of women as inferior figures in Ancient Greek society. What, then, does it say about Ancient Greece that the Amazons were portrayed as manly figures and done so approvingly? I argue that because warfare was so strongly associated with honor in Ancient Greek society and men engaged in the fighting, the Amazons were respected for their noble ability to fight and thus associated more with men than women.
In Herodotus’ book The Histories, he includes information about various cultures in order to give a rich background on all aspects of Ancient Greek society. According to French historian Francois Hartog, when narrators present a culture that is not their own, “a rhetoric of otherness may be developed” (Hartog, The Mirror of Herodotus, 212). Thus, in terms of Herodotus’ mention of the Amazons in The Histories, they are first described in terms of their relationship with Greek culture. For example, in his description of the war between the Greeks and the Amazons, he notes that after the Amazon’s raided the Greek ships and killed the men “[The Amazons] did not know anything about ships or how to use the rudders, sails,
In ancient Greece, it was crucial that men proved their masculinity in order to uphold their worth and earn them a place in social establishments. An important aspect of human life is a man’s masculine identity and how it plays a role in society. However with this idea of masculinity came limitations that were not to be crossed. Ancient Greek epics, the Iliad and the Odyssey, both function to provide their own view on masculinity in society through the reverse sex similes. In the Iliad the crucial role of Achilles as a warrior and his association with maternal protection, as represented through it’s reverse sex maternal similes, ultimately proves problematic. This intrinsic part of man to fight on the battlefield to win timê and kleos is ultimately
16). Homer told stories and history traveling across the country and followed a mythopoetic tradition, but nothing was recorded (Hoefferle, p. 16-17). The revolutionary shift came from the emergence of historians who criticized Homer’s lack of applied rationalist methods to the study of their past (Hoefferle, p. 16). Herodotus was the first to break away from that tradition and “attempted to study the world through observable evidence” ( Hoefferle, p. 17) Herodotus’ thinking was very different and intuitive for the time period.
The ancient Greeks are known for many things, and one of them is their stories. Whether they are told through epic poetry or drama, these tales have lasted throughout the times. However, as the times change, so did the Greek ideals about heroism and society. In this essay I will be using Homer’s Iliad and Aeschylus’ Persians to illustrate the differences in society and how they affect the heroism in the literature of later periods. The Persian people are depicted in ways that makes them appear weaker than the Greeks, but time changed how this was achieved. Due to a change in the values of Greek society, the Persians were portrayed as weak with the same traits that made Achilles appear to be so strong.
The title of Sarah B. Pomeroy's book on women in antiquity is a summary of the main categories of females in the literary imagination and the societies of ancient Greece and Rome, over a period of fifteen hundred years. Beginning with goddesses, Pomery retells some Greek myths, outlining the social functions of female Olympians – the goddesses are archetypical images of human females, as envisioned by males. Desirable characteristics among a number of females rather than their concentration in one being are appropriate to a patriarchal society. Demosthenes states in the fourth century B.C. this ideal among mortal men, "We have mistresses for our enjoyment, concubines to serve our person and wives for the bearing of legitimate children (Pomery 1995)." Pomery’s goal in writing this book was to detail and outline the true significance of women in all other their roles in antiquity.
The article “No women no war” was written by Pasi Loman , a post graduate student from university of Nottingham. Loman discusses about the role of Greek women in defending their cities and communities. The author attempts to clarify the assumptions made by modern scholars or authors that women did not play a part in foreign military campaigns i.e. war. Loman discusses about Greek women and their views, emotion and reaction based on warfare, the impossible existence of amazons.
After reading the ancient Greek stories entitled The Iliad and Medea, authored by Homer and Euripides, respectively, I realized a startling and disturbing truth involving society during ancient Greek times. It seems as though no matter how similar the circumstances, or how similar the action undertaken and the reason for undertaking such an action, women in ancient Greek society were never, ever, regarded as being heroic. While a man who chose to commit selfishly rageful atrocities during this period was considered admirable, honorable, and was revered by others, the same truth did not apply to women, even if they were essentially forced into a similar situation. This conclusion was reached after an in-depth comparison of the
Since the Neolithic Age, gender specific roles were put into place. Men held all the occupations that required constant intellectual power and muscles, while women did all the laissez-faire work that would not put their lives in jeopardy. Men were perceived to be better than woman in every aspect of life in the beginning ages of the world, and even today in the 21st Century. This long going battle of the sexes is seen all throughout history, and illustrated in many forms of literature. “The Myth of Atalanta” is an insightful tale that has been around since the ancient times of Greeks and Romans with a clear message of gender issues. The story illustrates the message through the character’s actions, significant events, and the use of symbolism.
The Amazons were a group of warrior women who fought many of the great Greek heroes. They consistently went against what was considered the normal female role and led lives like their male counterparts. Unlike some myths in Greek mythology, the myths that involve the Amazons are spread out over time and often have multiple variations of one myth. Myths involving the Amazons even sometimes have versions of the same myth with different Amazon warriors, making it difficult to understand what Amazon women is associated with the certain myth. Throughout Greek mythology, the Amazons were portrayed as fierce warriors and this carries over into today’s society.
The Amazons, a tribe of enigmatic warrior women of ancient Greek myth who are said to have lived in what was then Scythia and Sarmatia, which is now considered Eastern Europe and Central Russia. Achilles and Heracles both battled against these Amazons. Each noting their explicable warfare strategy and ability. But who exactly were these bow-wielding, horse riding women warriors of the Eurasian steppes? In this book, Mayor uses a wide variety of sources, ranging from a wide variety of different fields of study, to attempt to shed some light on this inscrutable society. Mayor uses some fairly new, yet certainly ground-breaking recent discoveries in the field of Archaeology to create a base for her argument. Giving numerous examples of women, some in their teens, being given the burial of a warrior.
Before the United States was colonized, people groups that are collectively known as Native Americans inhabited the majority of the country. Beginning in 1492, a new age of exploration had begun an era of cultural exchange across the globe, and European countries began establishing colonies in the Americas. European royals sent men to their colonies not only to claim the land, but also to procure wealth, through trade, resources, and precious treasures such as gold and silver. As the Europeans conquered the New World, they interacted often with the Native Americans, using them to survive, and navigate the territory. When the colonies were first established, the few travellers that were able to survive the trans-Atlantic voyage usually died
Homer’s Iliad is undoubtedly focused on its male characters: Achilles, primarily, but also Hector and Agamemnon. Nevertheless, it seems that the most crucial characters in the epic are female. Homer uses the characters of Thetis, Andromache, and Helen as a basis for comparison to the male characters. Homer wants his audience to see and understand the folly of his male characters in choosing war over peace, aggression over kindness, and honor over family. While the behavior of these characters clearly speaks for itself, the contrasting attitudes and behaviors of the female characters proffer an alternative; in comparison, the reader can hardly fail to concur with Homer’s message that war, aggression,
In perusing the various roles women fill in our modern society, it is clear the popularity and relevance of the patriarchy is dwindling. However, in Homer’s Iliad, men reigned omnipotent; women were treated as objects, won as prizes in war, and are routley discounted as ineffectual human beings. Whatever the reason for man’s dismissal of women as inferiors, the responses of women to their societal immobility sheds their real traits and abilities in a new light. The Iliad focuses on events during and at the end of the Trojan War, a conflict that not only pits the two male armies against each other, but also main female characters Aphrodite, Briseis, and Helen against the pervasiveness and power of patriarchy. Through a feminist examination of
For this informative report I will attempt to point out the roles women and how they are viewed in ancient Greece. I will then show how these views are present in Homer’s "The Odyssey." How are women, goddess or mortal, conveyed in "The Odyssey?"
Gender inequality has been a controversial topic for numerous religions and cultures throughout history. Women were commonly regarded as the subservient gender, an idea that was no different in Ancient Greece. Throughout Greek mythology, women were considered inferior and troublesome symbols, while men were known for courage, leadership, and strength. While there is no argument of the flagrant sexism that is illustrated in Greek mythology, it can also be claimed that women were given a situated position of freedom, necessity, and power as well. Many popular Greek plays and myths contain several complexes and well described female characters. These goddesses themselves, partook the role of victim, heroine, and villain as it illustrated the diversity of characters in which women were portrayed and seen in both Ancient Greek society and mythology, allowing us to question “Were the women of Ancient Greek mythology equally represented as free and superior?” The creation of the Greek mythological universe, the creation of multi-gendered goddesses or deities, and the free and superior personalities accredited to women in Ancient Greek mythology to answer the question that women were fairly represented as powerful in Ancient Greek mythology.
People today are not the only ones who have been fascinated with the Amazons. The Amazons were immensely popular with the Greeks and