What Women Symbolize in Greek Art - Essay Example

History Essay about pe Reflection Questions Q 2 In the contemporary world women should not be denied their contribution. All the great men of Greece and Rome were born of women and they owe to them their early child care and even their early education. It is very important to recognize the importance of early education in the life of a child even though the most of the societies become more rigidly divided as to the role and place of the women in the society. There are a number of historical women who up to date stand out very conspicuously, most notable in the history of Greece of which are Sappho and Aspasia. However there are a number of anonymous women of the oracle at Dephi who responsible for advising the Athenians to go and defend the wall of the Wood. Most women in the Greek society were greatly restricted but not as much as the women in other societies of that time. Their role in art was very much important since they represented the ideals of the Greek society and even some religious fervor. This gave rise to an art of great perfection that was highly demanded as a trade item. At that time religion had a lot of interdependence on the stories that were developed in the earlier society where women could prove to act more powerful and independently. The Greek developed a sense of an ideal so that the portrait of the depicted women could depend not only on the ordinary people but on the best that was available at that time. Most of the societies benefited economically from the spreading trade in art while the rest of the world reaped some little benefits from the view of the women that had a less restriction in the Greek society. Differences According to the literature of stereotypes of Athens, women were highly valued for their virtues of not gossiping, taking the responsibility of household management, and most importantly for the production of legitimate children (Tomus, Hall and Geldart 11). The aristocratic woman was majorly secluded in the quarters that were set aside for the women and they were to be accompanied when they were in the public places. She could own a lot of property but they could not sell those property. Most of the Athenian women were subjects to their fathers and even after they were married, they could ask for their return. All women in Athens were not recognized as the citizens of Athens.   In Roman, women were legally subjects to the pater familias whether the dominant male in their household of birth or the household of their husbands (Sommerstein 37). They could own property and dispose-off the same property at their own wish and even go about their daily activities at their own wish. Roman women were in most cases valued for piety, their modesty and their virtues of maintaining harmony and also by the fact that they can become one-man woman. In Roman women were consider citizens of Roman. What women Symbolizes in Greek art The image of a woman could be used to represent the goddesses and their realms this image could therefore mean that the images of women represents natural and even some spiritual processes as well as ideal woman and even real women. Most of their representations would depend on their attributes and even their associations. Classical Greek myths regarded women quite differently with the classical Greek society (Barrett 13). The deities would act as if they are great members of the willful family whose members act out their emotions. Each and every deity had a realm in which they act and from which they did draw their powers. Women were less respected especially during the war they were accorded less respect, some women were valued as a prize of war but this did not so much of the respect. Aristophanes - Lysistrata Guide Q 1 From where do the women who meet with Lysistrata come? Various city states of Greece Q 2 What do these women vow to do? Women vowed to withhold sexual privileges from their menfolk as a means of forcing them to end the interminable Peloponnesian war. Q 3 What do the old women of Athens do? The old women of Athens have seized control of it at Lysistratas instigation, since it holds the state treasury, without which the men cannot long continue to fund their war. They go off to spread the word of revolt to the other women so that they can retreat behind the barred gates of the Acropolis to await for the responses from the side of the men Q 4 How do the men try to get the women out of the Acropolis? They intent to burn down the gate of the Acropolis that is encumbered with heavy timbers, inconvenienced with smoke and burdened with old age if their women do not open up. They are still making preparations to assault the gate when a Chorus of Old Women arrives, bearing pitchers of water. Q 5. How do the women stop them? They exchanged fight in defense of their younger comrades, the fetched water and then started exchanging threats as water beats the fire and the old men are discomfited with a soaking Q 6 In the discussion between the magistrate and Lysistrata, why is getting married so different for men than for women? The magistrate reflects on the hysterical nature of most women, how they are devoted to wine and even to promiscuous sex and exotic cults but above all he blames men for poor supervision of their womenfolk. Q 7 Five days after the siege, how does women holding up? Women feel frustrated at the time of war when their men make stupid decisions that affect almost everyone. They the drapes their headdresses over men giving them a basket of wool and tells them that the war will be the business of women. Q 8 How does Cinesias try to get his wife, Myrrhine, to come home? He promptly agrees to the terms of her wife Myrrhine to stop the ongoing war Q 9 What does Myrrhine do to Cinesias? Myrrhine immediately fetches a bed and a mattress that is attached with a pillow and a blanket. She then goes for a flask of oil so as to exasperate her husband with delays until finally disappointing him completely by locking herself in the Acropolis again. Q 10 what does herald from Sparta tells the magistrate? A Spartan herald request the magistrate to make arrangement for peace talks Q 11 What two u n - named characters unexpected get together? The old men and the old women got fussed together Q 12 Who broker the peace between Athens and Sparta? When the peace talk started, Lysistrata introduced the Spartan and Athenian to a gorgeous reconciliation. Works cited Alan Sommerstein, Aristophanes:Lysistrata, The Acharnians, The Clouds Penguin Classics 1973, page 37 David Barretts edition Aristophanes: the Frogs and Other Plays (Penguin Classics 1964) page 13 Tomus II, F.Hall and W.Geldart, Lysistrata in Aristophanis Comoediae Oxford University Press 1907 edition, lines 10–11, Wikisource original Greek Read More