Women In Greek Society

Women in Greek Society

Ages before the first civilizations arose; men and women lived equally amongst themselves in tribes. Throughout the years however, mankind slowly but surely advanced as a race. The first civilizations of Mesopotamia , a land mass located in the Middle East , arose and fell and did not last very long. These civilizations included some of the earliest ideas within them including:

1. The first calendar (which included the concept of time)

2. Polytheism (or the belief in more than one God)

3. The first forms of studies such as Anatomy and Astrology

4. The first form of Democracy

The most advanced of all of the civilizations however, was the Greek civilization.

This is due to the fact that they came after the earliest of civilizations and were able to incorporate new ideas while still holding on to some traditional values. It is because of this that the civilization was so prosperous. The Greek civilization was divided into what is now known as “city-states” which could also be described as nations within a nation. However they were not completely independent because although the C/S’s had different ideas, there was always a “common ground” to each of them in most situations.

Athens Was the birthplace of what Hunt calls a “Radical Democracy”. In the mid-fifth century B.C., Athenian democracy arose, and was revolutionary compared to the governments prior to it. (Hunt, 90) These governments included variations to the concept of a single ruler or a Monarchy. One variation to the concept of a Monarchy could be found in Thebes , a Greek city-state which hosed one of the most famous Greek tales ever told, or the story of Edipus Rex. Antigone, the sequel, if you will, to the Edipus Rex story is a perfect example of how women were looked upon during that time, which I will later explain in greater detail. Thebes was a city state ruled by a monarch who claimed he had divine right, or the belief that the Gods consented to his rule and was empowered by them. This form of government was not as civil as the early form of democracy found in Athens . However this form of democracy is not as civil as we have to day. The form of democracy Hunt describes is much rawer than today’s complex government. For example, the tale of Aristides and the name ostracizement. The tale demonstrates that Athenians thought the right way to protect democracy lied in the trusting of people to govern themselves without questioning to the majority of the free, adult, men’s decisions.

Both Athenians and people of Thebes were divided into a social class system, much like their predecessors. There was a hierarchy, which included all the wealthy, royalty, and included the city-state’s military in some cases. It also included a middle class, which consisted of free, non-wealthy, non-servant people. And last and looked upon as least during the time, slaves or servants were the lowest of the class system. Women were looked upon with a little bit more respect than slaves because of their “lack of strength” in the eyes of men. Most women did not know it then but they were capable of much more than simply having children and staying in the house. This was due to the fact that most people were not educated back then, and there were very few naturally strong willed females at the time. The story of Antigone is an example of one of these women. Antigone, one of the four children of Edipus Rex, was a very strong willed woman in that she does something no person, let alone woman, would dare do during that time, which is to defy the law. This was looked upon as treason to ones country and was punished by death to the offender. Antigone tells us that obedience should be utilized only when the law to abide by is right (moral).