Women's Role In Ancient Greece

Behind every great man there is a great woman. The woman being the mother and wife of the household, the caretaker and glue that held things together while the man was the “breadwinner”, this was an ideal that held true throughout history only until recent years. In Ancient Greece, women held an obligation to their house and husband, they were property in a sense, but at the same time they almost held an important position of power, only it was hidden behind the veil of the home life. While they were reliant upon their husbands, it can be viewed that it was the females that helped their husbands and sons obtain the positions that they held, for good or bad. The female role of power in Greece varied from slave to queen, the woman’s role was
the important but often subservient glue that was meant to keep the family together. Greek culture did not have to write down what was expected of women of the ancient time, because the men in society spent the entirety of a female’s life leaving their impressions of how they were meant to behave.
Analyzing the work of various philosophers and writers, women were viewed as tools of the household, as the glue that held the household. However women were not considered anything outside of that, and were expected to remain in the household and tend to the children. The wives and mothers were at the center of the household, even when the husband was home. The husband would have seniority in the household, but when he was gone, the women were in charge of everything, including the slaves and the children. While the men were gone, the women were meant to follow a stern set of rules in order to avoid being seen with the suspicion and gossiped about by her neighbors. The women of Ancient Greece sought to please their husbands and everything described to be a “good wife”. If they feel that another woman has been unfaithful, even if she simply let her husband’s friend into their house when he isn’t home, the other women will talk and attempt to ruin the reputation of the
woman. The good wife must do everything that is commanded and laid down for them by their husbands, in all matters.
Women were also to consider that her husband’s wishes are laws of the house, set down for her by divine will. The husband was always above his wife, and she had to obey to his every whim in order to satisfy his needs as well as maintain her social status. This meant even if the women were busy, they would need to drop everything to care for their husband if he was ill, and acknowledge how well he provided for her and their children. Women were also expected to keep the household clean, as well as tend to the slaves, children, and other tasks. A woman’s place was only in her home. It was believed that a woman’s body was made frail, and should only be kept indoors because it could not survive the grueling challenges that a male’s body could. Women were supposed to remain indoors and send out the servants who worked outside, and look after the ones who were meant to work indoors. These tasks gave women positions where it mattered mostly for respect to behave in the ways that they were told, but it was also the will of the gods. It was believed that the gods wanted the women to behave this way, and the gods laid down these rules so that way if they were followed, the women would have access to a better place in the
afterlife. However, men also had a few rules of their own as well. They were required to provide for his wife and family, the man was expected to be loyal to his wife for risk of shaming himself and robbing the honor of his wife, and bringing shame to his sons. Men were also supposed to use kind words, and be tactful when comforting his wife on something she may have done wrong, and give her a chance to correct the mistake. The male’s role was to provide a good image for his wife and daughters to learn and grow from. They were the one whom had to provide all of the money for the family, and on top of that make sure that the women understood their where they belonged in this society and understood how they were expected to behave. Euripides wrote a small segment about women, unlike most things written about women during that time, he attempted to stand up for women in accordance of the ways they were treated and what was expected of them. Wealthy women were made to buy a husband and then they will then become what their husbands want them to be. But if they wouldn’t take a husband, the women would then be looked down upon and could possibly be thrown out by their families. Euripides stated that once the woman is married, she was expected to adjust and change her behaviors in accordance with her new husband’s desires. Euripides attempts to explain that women felt trapped, like they are soldiers in their homes, where their husbands reign over them like a king. He implies that they would rather be out of their homes, and would like to break free of the injustices that they had been forced to live with. The women were not allowed to leave their home, while the men were allowed to leave and do whatever they would like should they grow weary of the household. But if the woman should leave, she would be seriously looked upon by society negatively and would be branded as scandalous, even if she did not partake in any improper acts. The woman of ancient Greece had lives with much injustice, but also it came with some potential sense of glory by proxy. True, while it wasn’t until much more modern times that woman would obtain a position equal to men. Looking back at the past there may have been pride in the family she would raise, but at the same time she’d never hold power like a man would. In many instances the wife and mother of a house was very much one of the greater warriors of ancient Greece, dealing with things that the men never could.