The life of women in Ancient Greece fell into two categories, an existence of inferiority in Athens, and a life of influence and respect in Sparta. Women in Athens grew up with no rights, were considered inferior and thought to be so unintelligent that a man needed to save them from themselves. Women is Sparta however were greatly influential in society, had rights and were sometimes the dominant partner in households. To simplify these two very separate cultures we will first look at Athenian women.

ATHENS:
In Athens, women were given to men in matrimony with no regard as to what the women wanted. Marriages and love were not parallel and these unions were set up strictly to product legitimate heirs and to see land passed down in families. There were two basic classes of society, citizens and non citizens.

Because only citizens could marry citizens, rich married rich and poor married poor leading to high rates of incest. In fact, if a family had only a daughter, a father would have to either adopt his son-in-law as a son or the inheritance was passed down to the women and she would become an epikleros, meaning she was joined with the property. To prevent the property from leaving the family she would marry her nearest relative.

When a women was presented to a man, she was required to be a virgin. In Athens, under Draconian Law, a man could kill any man he caught having sex with his wife, mother, daughter, sister or concubine. It was common practice however for a man to have relations outside his marriage. Adultery, was defined as a women have sexual relations outside of marraige, but did not reference a man’s actions. Becuase a woman was assigned a husband, most women lived loveless lives. Wives were thought of as child bearers and nothing more so men routinely visited brothers, prostitutes or heteras.

If a women was not considered worthy of marrying, or not high society enough she had few options. She could find work in a brothel, as a prostitute who was restricted to wearing bright colors, as a concubine or “mistress” in a relationship with a married man, or as a heteras. A heteras was an educated women who was known for her wit, lively conversation and talent. A heteras was for a man’s intellectual and sexual gratification where as a wife was solely to provide children.

In Athens, girls were forced to marry just after puberty. She was often wed to a man in his late twenties or early thirties. The Ancient Greeks believed that a girl needed to have sex to free her blood flow. If a girl was not married, they thought that the blood would back up into her lungs causing hallucinations. Women were thought to menstruate because they were softer and not as strong as men and the blood flow was the bodies was of releasing pain. The lifespan of an Athenian woman was rarely past 35-40 years old.

When a women had a baby, she was required to present the baby to her husband. If her husband was to reject the child because of a deformity (female) or retardation the child was usually placed in a pot outside to prevent the family from feeling responsible for the babies death. They would claim the baby died of natural causes.

A husband, in Athens could choose to divorce his wife. If divorced the man would keep the children and the women would return home with whatever dowry remained. Women were to be invisible. They could not leave the home with the exception of a funeral or a religious cult festival suitable for women. If a man had a guest in the home, a woman was not allowed to me in the same room.

SPARTA:
In Sparta, young girls and boys were educated together often competing in athletics together. Spartan girls married older than other women in Greece. The average age of a women in Sparta to marry was 18 years old. Historians think women were encouraged to marry later because they would produce more healthy and strong babies to fight in the war.

Because Spartan women married later, they were often emotionally stronger and married men much closer in age. Although women were not allowed to vote or hold office, they were very influential. Most men were away at war so women had much more power at home.

Women in Sparta could own property and many did. In some households, several men shared one wife because there were fewer men. In these homes, the women were dominant. A women’s purpose in Sparta was to produce strong soldiers to fight. Women were in charge of household duties, owned businesses, and raised children. When boys reached seven years old, women released them to the states custody.

Spartan women in Ancient Greece were thought to be bold and overtly sexual. Because Sparta was known for their soldiers, womens clothes were looser to not restrict movement. Spartan women were much more aggressive and opinionated than their Athenian counterparts. Daughters could inherit land and wealth in Sparta.

In closing, you can see that women were treated very differently in different parts of Greece. While both sets of women were not allowed positions of power and both had loveless marriages where their sole purpose was to have children, Spartan women were allowed many more civil liberties.