The Dichotomy Of The Social Expectations Of Men And Women In Ancient Greece

The above passage is taken from Thucydides' history of the Peloponnesian War, near the end of Pericles’s funeral oration in the winter of 431 B.C.E. Pericles’s statement displays the dichotomy of the social expectations of men and women in Classical Greece. Men controlled all aspects of public life, including government, social events, and rituals. Women were to remain at home, keeping silent and performing tasks given to them by their husbands and fathers. This dichotomy is very prevalent in ancient Greek funerary rituals. In these rites, the complementary roles played by males and females do not simply mark and facilitate transitions undergone by the deceased and by bereaved relatives, but these gendered roles also ultimately re-assert and

They reflect the beliefs, values, and traditions of a community and are performed for a variety of reasons, such as to mark important events, celebrate milestones, or praise and transition the dead. Funerary rituals hold a significant place in human cultures as they provide a way to mourn and honor the deceased. Anthropologist David Kertzer has described a ritual as an action wrapped in a web of symbolism, meaning the ritual has a purpose, function, and meaning. The funerary rituals and customs of ancient Greece in the Archaic and Classical ages were a complex set of acts that served a variety of functions on multiple levels. Through the analysis of archaeological finds, literary evidence, and secondary scholarship, this paper attempts to highlight the complex nature of ancient Greek funerary customs and how these customs relate to the broader theme of death and the afterlife in the ancient world. In this discussion the focus will be on each aspect of the funeral ritual, how it was performed, who performed the ritual aspect in question, how the ritual aspect serves as a transition, and finally how it reinforces the social

It was a way to honor the deceased and in contrast to the prothesis, publicly acknowledge their passing, while also providing a space for the community to come together and mourn. The ritualized nature of the procession helped to give structure and meaning to the event, while also reinforcing the importance of community and social bonds in the face of death. As the body was being physically transitioned from the home to the grave, this could be interpreted as a signal to the community that the family was ready to accept the