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Gender role in ancient greece
Womens role in euripides
Gender theory in greek plays
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More handpicked essays just for you.
Gender role in ancient greece
Womens role in euripides
Gender theory in greek plays
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Unspectacularly, the Jeffers adaptation of Medea is quite a disappointment painting Medea as an animal with no “reason” or human-like thought in regards to her decisions. “QUOTE”. Consistently compared to animals, Medea rarely gains the respect as the incredibly intelligent human-being that Medea should have. On countless occasions, Medea remains seen as an animal, including, “I shall not die perhaps as a pigeon does. Nor like an innocent lamb, that feels a hand on its head and looks up from the knife to the man’s face and dies – No, like some yellow-eyed beast that has killed its hunters let me lie down” (Jeffers, 28.)
Thus Ward is able to address the double edge sword that presents females in stories as “weak” or built upon the “wrath of a woman.” The inclusion of the universality that is associated with Greek mythology allows Ward to shed off the label of blackness from her work. With China, Esch and Katrina all carrying some traits of Medea, it allows the reader to see all aspects of being female from being vulnerable, brave, nurturing and protective. Moreover, Ward insinuates that women should be presented as empowering to one another and through Medea paralleling story Ward articulates her
Objectification and Patriarchal Control in “Christina of Markyate” written by Anonymous Authors Like any other female during the beginning of the twelfth century, Christina of Markyate, formally known as Theodora, was considered to be inferior to the male sex. Women were expected to respect the wishes of their parents, oblige to marriage and live a life according to stereotypical heterosexual norms. However, given the strict expectations Christina was supposed to submit to, she dismissed traditional gender roles and continued to strive towards the goal of preserving her virginity and living the life of a nun. In the story “Christina of Markyate,” anonymous authors use examples of objectification and patriarchal control to portray Christina’s lack of freedom in a time period consumed with male dominance.
Women have always been portrayed as the weaker sex compared to men. It has been demonstrated in history itself and throughout literary works. Shakespeare’s Macbeth and Homer’s The Odyssey, however, portray women to be more powerful than men, even when their society thought otherwise and underestimated them because of their gender. Lady Macbeth, The Three Witches, Queen Arête and Penelope demonstrate the astute, charming, and ambitious side of women that was overlooked by men when it came to having power and making decisions.
In many societies today, individuals are led to believe that the concept of women possessing their own strength or independence is abnormal. As a result, women experience the world in a constrained way in comparison to men, even if they are in higher classes of society. However, these extensive aspects of females are contradicted in some ancient Greek literature. In the epic poem, The Odyssey, Homer portrays women as a vital and powerful force through the characters Penelope and Circe, who counter the normality of misogyny in Homer’s time. Penelope’s character displays how some women are able to exceed society’s standards and show strength and cleverness when it is necessary.
I want Medea to be justified in her actions, but I want this to be something that could happen to anyone. I don’t want her actions to be considered ‘what women do.’ There is also this theme of feminism and standing up for women in general. She criticizes men while using her wit to maneuver the situation properly. Medea is a cunning woman confined to this world dominated by men.
What is worth mentioning in Sophocles’ play is that he not only showed the weak side of women but also the strong ones. For example, Ismene is the traditional role of women in ancient Greek—coward, fear of men power and feeble. For Ismene, "we must remember we were born women, not meant to strive with men" (Antigone). She even chose to die with Antigone while hearing her sentence, for she was afraid that she would be alone, she could not be able to fight against Creon, this men-dominant society. In contrast, her sister Antigone presents the “women power”.
It is well known that for much of history, females have been largely oppressed and given few rights, unlike the male gender. Traditionally, a women’s role in society was to be a submissive housewife and to raise children. In Sophocles’ play, Antigone, a young woman goes against the law to give her dead brother a proper burial, defying the typical role expected of a female during this time period. Antigone can be seen as a role model for women because she knows her own mind, stands up to her uncle, and sacrifices herself for someone she loves. Women during this time period were expected to listen to the men in society and follow their rules.
In Euripides’ text The Medea, Medea can easily be painted as the villian. She is a woman who killed her own children in an attempt to spite her husband. But, by examining the text, we can see that she deserves some sympathy. She has little to no control over her own life and has to rely on the will of men. And as a foreigner in Corinth abandoned by her husband, she faces even more challenges than the native women of Corinth did.
Medea and the women of Corinth both share, to a different extent, the experience of being unfairly categorized as the caretaker of the family, which aids Medea in persuasion because she can be trusted as a woman to speak on the patriarchal society. She continues as ‘’of all creatures that have life and reason we women are the sorriest lot’’ (229-230) of all the living things Medea describes women as the ‘’sorriest’’ which suggests that women are pitied and helps Medea to allure the Chorus to be on her side. Medea suggests to the Chorus that Females ‘’must at a great expenditure of money buy a husband and even take on a master over our body: this evil is more galling than the first. ’’(231-233) Medea is arguing that women must sacrifice a ‘’great’’ amount of money to ‘’buy’’ their partners. This conveys the patriarchal community in Corinth.
Lady Macbeth and Medea are therefore considered tragic heros because they put their loyalty above their own self-worth. Ultimately, this ideal encompasses how femininity is controlled by men, because the actions of the Macbeth and Jason were the cause for Lady Macbeth and Medea’s
Throughout history, women have been second fiddle to men. Females have been degraded, disrespected, and undermined; they’ve been ignored, silenced, and gone unheard. This gender inequality is present even in The Odyssey, though it includes many important female figures. Penelope, Calypso, Circe, and more are all crucial to the plot, and some even responsible for the happy ending, yet when inspected closely female stereotypes emerge. The majority of the women are presented as seductresses, the others as mothers, and almost all as fragile and dependent on men.
Women were meant to be submissive and obedient to the dominant figures in society in their eyes, which is why when she acted submissive and feminine, he believed she finally understood his view and gained some sensibility. She told Jason, “Wretched woman (thus I scolded myself), why am I so mad as to hate those that mean me well, to treat as enemies the rulers of this land and my husband, who, in marrying a princess and getting brothers for my children, is only doing what is best for us all?” (Euripides 58). At that point, Medea was discussing in reference his justification for marrying the Princess of Corinth. He claimed that he was marrying her so that he and their children could gain citizenship since currently they were not citizens of Athens and thus, did not receive any benefits or protection.
She describes the world to be unjust, especially to women. Medea believes that women are looked as inferior to men, and even so, men are quick to display their unlikely maltreatment. To her, women have little to no say in their marriage, their bodies, and general society. Medea’s outlook of women is first conveyed through this quote, bringing upon the theme of the state of women within Greece. This quote reveals the state of women within Greece, a leading theme of the story.
In the Ancient world, much like today, each society exercised, according to their custom, different treatment towards women. Today, unlike in the Ancient world, women enjoy more freedom, rights, and equality. In this essay, the status of women in ancient Egypt will be compared to the status of women in ancient Rome. Academic sources will be relied on to provide the necessary actualities when one investigates ancient lives and cultures. The legal status of women in society, the different roles that each unique nation’s women played, and the possible education permitted and occupations available to these women will be discussed, as well as, their domestic atmospheres will be critically compared in this short essay to demonstrate the different treatment (if there were a difference) of women in both these imposing periods of ancient history.