Unit 2 AS2-Part Two: Women In Ancient Greece

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Recommended: The role of women in ancient Greek society

Julian Mayugba
Professor Antonio Acevedo
HIS 210-ONR01
16 February 2017
Unit 2 AS2-Part 2: Women in Ancient Greece
Women in ancient Athens lived a highly restricted life. They could not leave the house unescorted, socialize with men that were not in the family or married, and they could not work in the government. The story, “A Husband’s Defense,” tells the story of Euphiletus, a man who had murdered his wife’s lover. The story lines up with both Xenophon’s “On Men and Women,” and Aristotle’s “On a Good Wife.”
Euphiletus’ wife was an “ideal” wife at first because she was a clever housewife who was economical and “exact in the management of everything;” These are traits found in “On Men and Women” and “On a Good Wife.” Euphiletus’ wife was considered a “bad” wife because she was not loyal to her husband and had an affair. In ancient Athenian society, women were not supposed to talk to males who were not their father, brother, or husband. She had …show more content…

Athenian women in the textbook were described as having a restricted life. Men in Athenian society had great sexual liberty, where multiple partners, sexual relationships with teenage boys, and prostitutes were not looked down on. These reflections of Athenian women do match what is in the textbook. According to Xenophon and Aristotle, women were inferior to men, and because of this, they had more restrictions. To conclude, Athenian society imposed heavy restrictions on the women. These restrictions were violated by Euphiletus’ wife, thus resulting in the murder of Eratosthenes. Without reading the full story, based on the restrictions set on women and the era where the murder had taken place, I believe that the murder would have been

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