Ancient Greece
As with many other cultures, in ancient Greece, women tended to get the short end of the stick. Asa patriarchal society, they did not have the same rights as men and were often considered property of their husbands and fathers. In some places, it was considered disgraceful to the husband for another man to write or even say the name of their beloved. Women were also not allowed much time out of the home and required the permission of their husbands to do many things. Their main focus was maintaining the house and caring for the children. Women were the representation of beauty and temptation, much like the goddess of love herself, Aphrodite. Sadly, women who could not produce the desired offspring, (generally male) became unattractive. If they could not fulfill their roles, they were thrown out like common trash. Men dominated society. Though in places such as Sparta, women did gain more control when the men would leave for war and they were left with the responsibility of
maintaining life without them. The men participated in training for the army,
politics, labor, and the fine arts. In Greek mythology the three most powerful figures are gods, (Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades) not goddesses.
Modern Greece
Today in Greece many women are facing discrimination similar to that of ancient Greece. Men still make most of the decisions and are thought of as the dominant and more important gender. There are still laws that give women the lesser advantage. One law of current controversy is one that forces a 17 week maternity leave on women, in turn forcing them to turn to the father for financial support. Some say this is a way to discreetly keep power away from the wife and with the husband. Though much of the traditional gender roles appear in Greece today, they have also made some major improvements for womens' rights. Women are now able to work and earn the same as their male counterpart and are allowed to vote. Women also have many laws protecting their jobs when they begin motherhood. Males, however, take on the dominant roles in the workplace even if there is a woman who would also be fit for the job. As you can see, these laws are not always followed thus many women still feel the lasting effect of their subordinate home lives and at work.
As with many other cultures, in ancient Greece, women tended to get the short end of the stick. Asa patriarchal society, they did not have the same rights as men and were often considered property of their husbands and fathers. In some places, it was considered disgraceful to the husband for another man to write or even say the name of their beloved. Women were also not allowed much time out of the home and required the permission of their husbands to do many things. Their main focus was maintaining the house and caring for the children. Women were the representation of beauty and temptation, much like the goddess of love herself, Aphrodite. Sadly, women who could not produce the desired offspring, (generally male) became unattractive. If they could not fulfill their roles, they were thrown out like common trash. Men dominated society. Though in places such as Sparta, women did gain more control when the men would leave for war and they were left with the responsibility of
maintaining life without them. The men participated in training for the army,
politics, labor, and the fine arts. In Greek mythology the three most powerful figures are gods, (Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades) not goddesses.
Modern Greece
Today in Greece many women are facing discrimination similar to that of ancient Greece. Men still make most of the decisions and are thought of as the dominant and more important gender. There are still laws that give women the lesser advantage. One law of current controversy is one that forces a 17 week maternity leave on women, in turn forcing them to turn to the father for financial support. Some say this is a way to discreetly keep power away from the wife and with the husband. Though much of the traditional gender roles appear in Greece today, they have also made some major improvements for womens' rights. Women are now able to work and earn the same as their male counterpart and are allowed to vote. Women also have many laws protecting their jobs when they begin motherhood. Males, however, take on the dominant roles in the workplace even if there is a woman who would also be fit for the job. As you can see, these laws are not always followed thus many women still feel the lasting effect of their subordinate home lives and at work.