Role Of Ancient Greek Women Essay
The Struggle of Women in Ancient Times
Women in ancient Greece and Rome struggled to exist. Women were not allowed certain privileges such as going to school, getting essential jobs, and some were even made into slaves. This was not the case for all women, but, the great majority of women were not treated as equals. Women even had certain duties in the public depending on their marital status. Women in ancient Greece and Rome did not have valid opinions, only the man’s opinion mattered. Women have struggled from the beginning of times in every aspect of life in ancient Greece and Rome to find their place and to be treated like equals; unfortunately it has taken many centuries to do so.
Marriage and Power
Men in ancient Greece and Rome were always in power. A Roman family was considered a "patriarchy"," which meant the oldest male in the family had the most power and was able to make the decision for their family. He had the power to divorce his wife or even kill her if she committed adultery or was found drinking wine (Lefkowitz & Fant, 1992, p. 3). Other reasons a man would divorce his …show more content…
The men in this era had the important jobs of protecting the people, going to war, and gathering food for their villages. If the woman was married, then the chances are she stayed at home to have children. The married women in ancient Greece and Rome also needed to watch over the house. If the women were not married, then they were generally prostitutes. Occasionally, a woman in ancient Greece and Rome could have a few other jobs. Some of these other jobs included being a poet, entertainer, midwife, or even a dancer (Jones, n.d., para. 17). Women of ancient Greece and Rome were not equal to men so most of them got sold into slavery. It was as common for the men to have the dangerous jobs as for the women to have the less important and even demeaning jobs because they were not equal to
Women in ancient Greece and Rome struggled to exist. Women were not allowed certain privileges such as going to school, getting essential jobs, and some were even made into slaves. This was not the case for all women, but, the great majority of women were not treated as equals. Women even had certain duties in the public depending on their marital status. Women in ancient Greece and Rome did not have valid opinions, only the man’s opinion mattered. Women have struggled from the beginning of times in every aspect of life in ancient Greece and Rome to find their place and to be treated like equals; unfortunately it has taken many centuries to do so.
Marriage and Power
Men in ancient Greece and Rome were always in power. A Roman family was considered a "patriarchy"," which meant the oldest male in the family had the most power and was able to make the decision for their family. He had the power to divorce his wife or even kill her if she committed adultery or was found drinking wine (Lefkowitz & Fant, 1992, p. 3). Other reasons a man would divorce his …show more content…
The men in this era had the important jobs of protecting the people, going to war, and gathering food for their villages. If the woman was married, then the chances are she stayed at home to have children. The married women in ancient Greece and Rome also needed to watch over the house. If the women were not married, then they were generally prostitutes. Occasionally, a woman in ancient Greece and Rome could have a few other jobs. Some of these other jobs included being a poet, entertainer, midwife, or even a dancer (Jones, n.d., para. 17). Women of ancient Greece and Rome were not equal to men so most of them got sold into slavery. It was as common for the men to have the dangerous jobs as for the women to have the less important and even demeaning jobs because they were not equal to