Wives, Witches and Warriors: Perspectives on Women in Ancient Greece and Rome
- achillesreel
- Sep 30
- 4 min read
Felicity
Perspectives on women in ancient Greece and Rome were deeply influenced by the social, political, and cultural contexts of each society, and these views evolved over time. In some periods and locations, women had more public presence and legal rights, while in others, they were relegated to domestic spaces and kept from participating in public life.
SPARTA
Spartan women enjoyed greater autonomy, education and economic power than women in any other Greek city-state. Spartan education placed great emphasis on physical fitness, based on the belief that strong mothers would produce strong warriors for the city-state. Spartan girls received formal education and rigorous physical training which involved running and wrestling. They were also taught literacy and numeracy, equipping them with skills necessary for managing households and estates in their husbands’ absence. Furthermore, education for girls included singing, poetry, music and dance, which were thought to enrich character. Spartan marriage customs differed from those of other Greek city-states. Rather than marrying in their early teens, Spartan women typically married around the age of 18. This was to ensure that Spartan wives were physically mature and would be more likely to bear healthy offspring.
Unlike Athenian women, Spartan women were able to inherit property, own land and make business transactions, giving them economic power which allowed them to indirectly influence political and military decisions. However, Greek philosopher Aristotle, who spent most of his life in Athens, criticised the independence and influence of Spartan women, arguing that women were biologically inferior to men. Overall, Sparta was a unique Greek city-state in that women and men were generally regarded as equals.
ATHENS
Unlike Spartan women, many of whom were literate and well-educated, Athenian women did not receive any formal education. Education in Athens was instead focused on boys; it was designed to prepare them for Athenian political and military life. Athenians held the perspective that the role of women in society was solely domestic. It was for this reason that, rather than receiving a formal education, girls were taught domestic skills, such as cooking and weaving, by female relatives. In Athens, girls were thought to reach marrying age, a mark of maturity, at fourteen years old. Marriage was a key event in the life of an Athenian woman; the primary role of women was to marry and bear children. Fourteen-year-old girls would often be married off to older men chosen by their fathers, with no influence over the matter.
Athenians strongly believed in the separation of males and females; Athenian women were kept indoors within household boundaries while their male counterparts involved themselves in public life. However, when it came to religious and spiritual activities, women played as active a role as men. For example, women played a key role in the cult of Athena Polias, the protector of Athens. The priestess of Athena held great prestige in Ancient Athens and possessed both symbolic importance and political influence. Religion was one of the few ways in which women could participate in Athenian public life. Overall, Athenians believed that women were second-class citizens who ought to be domestic figures confined to their households. However, some women found ways to involve themselves in public and political life through religion and priesthood.
ROME
The Roman family was male-dominated and Roman naming practices reflect this; male citizens had three names: praenomen, nomen and cognomen, while all women in the same family were referred to using the feminine version of the family name. Within the household, women would attend to domestic affairs and manage the slaves and servants. Upper class women might also study academic subjects such as literature and philosophy. In Rome, a child legally belonged to the father or closest male relative, rather than the mother.
The Roman law of Tutela mulierum perpetua required that every woman have an appointed male guardian to manage her financial and legal affairs. Cicero promoted the view that women had weak judgement (infirmitas consilii). However, in reality families may not have followed this law; there is evidence of women running their own financial affairs, owning business and running estates. There were a few exceptions to this rule, however: women with three children, freedwomen with four children, and Vestal Virgins.
Roman women typically had a very limited role in public life. They could not vote at political assemblies nor hold any position of political responsibility. Elite women, however, including Nero’s mother, Agrippina, were able to influence public affairs through their male relatives, though they held no formal political power. Furthermore, lower-class Roman women often did have a public life because they had to work to earn a living. They typically undertook jobs in agriculture, crafts and midwifery.
Women took a more public role in the religious life of Ancient Rome. Of particular importance were the priestesses of Isis and the Vestal Virgins. The latter women served for 30 years in the cult of Vesta, the goddess of the hearth. They participated in many religious ceremonies, often performing sacrificial rites and officiating at the annual Vestalia festival.
Overall, Roman culture heavily favoured men and women were generally regarded as inferior. However, there were a few instances, mainly in the religious sphere, in which women were appreciated, admired and respected.
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