Women in Classical Antiquity

An introduction to women and gender in the classical world that draws on the most recent research in the field

Women in Classical Antiquity focuses on the important objects, events and concepts that combine to form a clear understanding of ancient Greek and Roman women and gender. Drawing on the most recent findings and research on the topic, the book offers an overview of the historical events, values, and institutions that are critical for appreciating and comparing the life situations of women across both cultures.

The author examines the lifecycle of women in ancient Greek and Rome beginning with how young females acquired the gendered characteristics necessary for adulthood. The text explores female adolescence, including concerns about virginity, medical views of the female body, religious roles, and education. Views of marriage, motherhood, sexual activity, adultery, and prostitution are also examined. In addition, the author explores how women exercised authority and the possibilities for their civic engagement. This important resource:

• Explores the formation of classical women’s social identity through the life stages of birth, adolescence, marriage, childbirth, old age, and death
• Contains information on the most recent research in this rapidly evolving field
• Offers a review of the life course as a way to understand the social processes by which Greek and Roman females acquired gender traits
• Includes questions for review, suggestions for further reading, and a glossary of key terms

Written for academics and students of classical antiquity, Women in Classical Antiquity offers a general introduction to women and gender in the classical world.

Laura K. McClure, PhD, is Professor of Classics in the Department of Classical and Ancient Near Eastern Studies in the College of Letters and Science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her diverse research interests include Athenian drama, the study of women in the ancient world, and classical reception. Her publications include books on the representation of women in Athenian drama and the courtesan in the Greek literary tradition.

List of Figures xi

List of Charts xiii

List of Boxes xv

Preface xvii

Acknowledgments xix

Abbreviations xxi

Timeline of the Classical World xxv

Maps xxix

Introduction 1

1 Approaches to Women and Gender in Classical Antiquity 3

1.1 Ancient Greek and Roman Sources 4

1.2 Gender in Context: Social Identity in the Ancient World 8

1.3 Critical Approaches 9

1.4 Structuralism 10

1.5 Psychoanalytic Criticism 11

1.6 Feminist Criticism 12

1.7 Cultural Criticism 13

1.8 Conclusion 14

Questions for Review 14

References 15

Further Reading 15

Greece 17

2 Introduction to Ancient Greece 19

2.1 Greece in the Bronze Age: Minoan and Mycenaean Civilizations 20

2.2 Iron Age 24

2.3 The Rise of the Polis in the Archaic Period 28

2.4 Athens and the Classical Period 31

2.5 Conclusion 35

Questions for Review 35

Reference 35

Further Reading 36

3 The Greek Family and Household 37

3.1 Oikos: Family and Household 38

3.2 Greek Domestic Space 39

3.3 Textile Production: Women’s Work 42

3.4 Growing Up Female in the Greek Family 47

3.5 The Ritual Activities of Girls 51

3.6 The Family in Ancient Sparta 53

3.7 Conclusion 54

Questions for Review 54

Reference 54

Further Reading 54

4 Female Adolescence in Greece 57

4.1 Medical Views of Female Adolescence 58

4.2 Aidos: Protecting Purity 59

4.3 Nausicaa: A Teenage Girl in a Heroic World 61

4.4 Choruses of Young Girls 61

4.5 Brides of Death 66

4.6 The Greek Wedding 69

4.7 Conclusion 73

Questions for Review 74

Further Reading 74

5 Greek Marriage and Motherhood 77

5.1 Pandora: The Ambiguity of Wives 77

5.2 Aphrodite: The Power of Female Sexuality 79

5.3 Virtuous Wives: Penelope and Alcestis 83

5.4 How to Train a Wife 86

5.5 The Legal Status of Athenian Women 87

5.6 Pregnancy and Childbirth 89

5.7 Mothers and Children 94

5.8 Conclusion 96

Questions for Review 96

Further Reading 97

6 Adultery and Prostitution in Greece 99

6.1 Eros Unbound 99

6.2 Helen: Archetype of Adultery 100

6.3 Adultery and Athenian Law 101

6.4 Desperate Housewives 104

6.5 Courtesans and Prostitutes 107

6.6 Conclusion 113

Questions for Review 113

Further Reading 113

7 Women, Religion, and Authority in Greece 115

7.1 Older Women 115

7.2 Women as Ritual Agents 118

7.3 Priestesses 118

7.4 Women‐Only Religious Festivals 121

7.5 Women and Funerary Ritual 124

7.6 Conclusion 128

Questions for Review 129

Further Reading 129

Interlude: Women in the Hellenistic World 131

8 Women in the Hellenistic World 133

8.1 The Rise of Macedon and Alexander the Great 135

8.2 Olympias: Mother of Alexander 136

8.3 The Spread of Hellenism 137

8.4 Women and Hellenistic Literature 138

8.5 Aphrodite and the Female Nude 141

8.6 Traces of Women in Hellenistic Egypt 143

8.7 Ptolemaic Queens: Arsinoe II 144

8.8 Ptolemaic Queens: Berenice II 146

8.9 Conclusion 149

Questions for Review 150

Reference 150

Further Reading 150

Rome 153

9 An Introduction to Ancient Rome 155

9.1 Roman Foundation Myth 158

9.2 The Early Republic 161

9.3 Expansion of Roman Rule 163

9.4 Roman Spectacles 164

9.5 The Collapse of the Republic 167

9.6 Julius Caesar 168

9.7 The Transition to Empire 169

9.8 Augustus and Imperial Rome 170

9.9 Conclusion 172

Questions for Review 172

Further Reading 173

10 The Roman Family and Household 175

10.1 Familia and Domus 176

10.2 The Family of Augustus 178

10.3 Roman Domestic Space 180

10.4 Lanificium: Women’s Work 182

10.5 Growing Up Female in the Roman Family 183

10.6 Girls and Roman Religion 188

10.7 Educating Girls 189

10.8 Conclusion 190

Questions for Review 191

Reference 191

Further

Reading 191

11 Female Adolescence in Rome 193

11.1 Pudicitia: Protecting Purity 194

11.2 Medical Views of Female Adolescence 196

11.3 Age at First Marriage 199

11.4 Adolescent Girls in Roman Religion 200

11.5 Virgo Docta 201

11.6 The Roman Wedding 203

11.7 Conclusion 209

Questions for Review 209

Further Reading 209

12 Roman Marriage and Motherhood 211

12.1 Marriage and Property 214

12.2 Divorce, Roman Style 215

12.3 Cultus: The Art of Self‐Fashioning 216

12.4 Managing the Household 218

12.5 Roman Views of Contraception and Abortion 220

12.6 Childbirth and Nursing 221

12.7 Mothers and Children 225

12.8 Conclusion 227

Questions for Review 228

Further Reading 228

13 Adultery and Female Prostitution in Rome 231

13.1 Clodia Metelli: A Woman of Pleasure 234

13.2 Women in Latin Love Elegy 236

13.3 The Augustan Law Against Adultery 239

13.4 Concubines 241

13.5 Female Prostitution 243

13.6 Conclusion 247

Questions for Review 247

Further Reading 247

14 Women and Public Life in Rome 249

14.1 Benefactors and Businesswomen 250

14.2 Female Political Protests 255

14.3 Women and Roman Religion 257

14.4 Priestesses 258

14.5 Matronal Cults 261

14.6 Women and Foreign Cults 263

14.7 Conclusion 264

Questions for Review 265

Further Reading 265

Glossary 267

Index 273

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