The Role Of Women As Portrayed In Classical Mythology Essay

The Greco-Roman society was a very patriarchal society. This is reflected throughout the myths in classical mythology. By looking at the classic mythology we will see that the roles women portrayed are very different than women’s roles in today’s society. Although there are a few similarities to women’s roles in today’s society, their roles are more like those women in the past. We can see this by looking at the attributes of Greco-Roman female gods and looking at the roles women play in the myths. By comparing the roles of women in the myths with women’s roles today we will see that the roles have many differences and few similarities. The first things we will look at to show women’s roles reflected in Classical mythology†¦show more content†¦This is different than today’s society because today gardening is shared among males and females and we know that it is actually the males X or Y chromosome that determine the sex of a child. Aphrodite is another Olympian Deity who helps show the role of women in Greco-Roman society. Aphrodite was the goddess of sexual desire. I think this showed that women in this period used men’s desire to get things they wanted. In one myth Aphrodite got Zeus to change himself into a swan. Now, who’s supposed to be the most powerful god? This is very similar to the role of women in today’s society. Women usually use men’s desires to get them to do what they want them to. The big difference is that in today’s society many women give into the men and share in desire with them before they are married while in the Greco-Roman society very few women had premarital relations. Women who were not virgins were usually never married and sold into slaves by their fathers (Powell 34). Another way to look at the role of women in Greco-Roman society, as reflected in Classical Mythology is to look at women’s roles within myths. Several myths that help explain women’s roles in Greco-Roman society are The Folktale of Pandora, Theseus and Hippolytus, The story of Penelope, and the Homeric Hymn to Demeter. All of these myths help to show the roles of women in the Greco-Roman Society. The folktale of Pandora is one myth which helps show the role of women in theShow MoreRelated Equality Between Men and Women in Modern Society vs. Ancient Greek Society625 Words   |  3 PagesIn todays society, women hold a position equal to that of a man. However, this has not always been the case especially in the Ancient Greek society. In the society there were many rules and regulations for all, but in particular the women had it the hardest. Women were seen as insignificant characters in the Ancient Greek society. While the men†¦.women attained the most difficult job of all, bearing children. These women in the society had very little freedom, actually no freedom at all. 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