- [Narrator] Ancient
Greece has a reputation
of favoring men.
Women were looked at as submissive.
Once a woman got married,
she was under the control
of her husband.
Prior to that, her
father or a male relative
served as her guardian.
As a result of this, people
automatically assumed
that women played no role in
ancient Greek society at all.
However, this couldn't be
further from the truth.
The reality is, how women were
treated in ancient Greece,
differed from city state to city state.
Hello, and welcome to Alpha Omega.
In this video, we will
examine the role of women
in ancient Greece.
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So, let's begin.
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In classical Greece, young
girls usually grew up
in the care of a nurse and
spent most of their time
in the Gynaeceum.
The women's quarters of
the house were located
on an upper floor.
The Gynaeceum was where
mothers nursed their children
and engaged in spinning
thread and weaving.
In addition to childbearing,
the weaving of fabric
and managing the household
were the principal
responsibilities of a Greek woman.
Young women, however, had
some mobility in antiquity.
For example, retrieving water
from the local fountain house
was considered not only a woman's task,
but it also offered the
woman the opportunity
to socialize with other
women outside of the house.
It was also the responsibility of women
to visit the tombs of family members.
Women could attend public speeches
and visit certain sanctuaries,
such as those of Artemis at Brauron
and the sanctuary of the Nymphe
at the foot of the Acropolis.
However, during any occasion
outside of the house,
a young woman was expected
to be inconspicuous
and to be covered around
the head to include
most of her face and neck.
Women of various ages also took part
in specific religious festivals,
some of which even included men.
The Panathenaea, in honor
of the goddess Athena;
the Eleusinian Mysteries
that honored Demeter
and Persephone;
and the Anthesteria, sacred to Dionysus.
Religious rituals reserved
for young girls probably had
the most significant impact
on young unmarried women.
For example, young girls
between the ages of five
and puberty were selected
to serve the goddess Artemis
in the sanctuary at Brauron.
As little bears, they acted out the role
of untamed animals that
eventually would be domesticated
through marriage.
Thus the self perception of a young girl
in classical Greece was manipulated
through behavioral
instruction in the home,
through the myths that
reiterated social values
and through their participation
in rituals that educated
them in the values and
morals of their community.
The culmination of a young
woman's socialization
was her marriage, which
usually took place at the age
of 14 or 15.
Marriage did not require
a young bride's consent,
as she was simply passed from
the protection of her father
to that of her husband.
A young woman in classical
Athens lacked any rights
of citizenship and would only be described
as the wife of an Athenian citizen.
However, a bride brought
to her marriage a dowry
that was not available
for the husband to spend.
In fact, on the rare occasion
that the marriage failed,
the dowry was returned
to the wife's father.
The consummation of
marriage signaled the end
of a young woman's status
as a poor or young maiden,
as she was then classified
as a nymph or bride,
until the birth of her first child,
when she became a gyne or a woman.
The life expectancy of the average woman
was about 40 years old.
In general, women in ancient Greece
really didn't own land.
However, there are some
documented instances
from Delphi, Gortyn,
Sparta, Thessal and Megara,
of women having their
own private property,
which gave them status and prestige.
Women were not permitted
to become citizens
in the Athenian city state.
Since they weren't able
to own their own property,
they weren't able to hold
full citizenship rights.
Interestingly enough, slaves
were able to become citizens,
if they were freed.
Women actually had
fewer rights than slaves
because they were never
allowed their own freedoms.
Although they weren't
allowed citizenship status,
and were not able to own property,
they still perceived
themselves as being civilized.
Athenian women were also
not allowed in education.
Men were the only ones
allowed in the schools.
They also wore clothing that
completely covered their bodies
and were not able to
walk where they wanted.
Since Sparta was a military society,
that means that men were
away from home all the time.
They quickly realized
that the women needed
to have more rights.
Basically they were charged
with maintaining the households,
especially while the men were away.
They could also own property.
In fact, at one time, Spartan
women owned around 40%
of the property.
Besides it being a practical arrangement,
one big reason why Spartan women
were given so much prestige
was because they were the
mothers of Spartan warriors.
And unlike their Athenian cousins,
they were given plenty of freedoms.
They wore short dresses and
could go wherever they pleased.
They were also highly educated.
At one time it was believed
that the way Athenian women
were treated was typical
of the other city states.
However, evidence has been
uncovered that suggests
other city states treated their women
more like the Spartans did.
One theory suggests that because
democracy was highly prized
in Athens, women lived
a restricted existence
because the men believed that
it helped prevent adultery.
Establishing paternity of
male children was essential
in Athenian society because, without it,
the male children
couldn't become citizens.
To fully examine the role
of women in ancient Greece,
it helps to contrast the
lives of women in Athens
and the women in Sparta.
The Athenian women were
given very few freedoms,
whereas the Spartans were
allowed to own property,
become citizens, and be educated.
To say that all ancient
Greek women were submissive
is incorrect.
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