Zugl.: Bochum, Univ., Diss., 2004

Harvard Univ., Diss.--Cambridge (Mass.), 1993.

Teilw. zugl.: Basel, Univ., Diss., 2006 u.d.T.: Crelier, Marie-Claire: Aspekte der gesellschaftlichen Wahrnehmung des kleinen Kindes in der athenischen Polis des 5. Jhs. v. Chr. im Spiegl archäologischer Quellen

Diss. Univ. Stuttgart, 2006.

Thesis (doctoral)--Universität, Paderborn, 2001. / Includes bibliographical references.

Zugl.: Stuttgart, University, Diss., 2006.

Passau, Universiẗat, Diss., 2009.

Zugl.: München, Univ., Habil.-Schr., 2004

The women of ancient Athens have been studied to greath lenght, yet it is still a controversial subject where researchers still debate the seclusion of women. This study concerns the wifes positon in the household of claissical and hellenistic Athens, what were her social relations to the members inside the household. This paper will move in a cronological order starting with classical writers, mainly Xenophon. The hellenistic chapter will use the same concept of working with hellenistic writers, mainly Menander and Theophrastus, to see how the social relations for the married woman has changed, or how it haven’t. In both these chapters there will also be discussions of what work that is commonly named for women, what it represents, and the concerns of its authenticity. This study will also use archaeological material for this research where the reader is going to be able to se movement patterns of the ancient woman in her home. Also problem we have when looking for the athenian woman in the architecture. New types of sculptures arrives during the hellenistic times, what can they tell us about status and roles of women? Finally there will be a conclusion of the differences in the status of married women and if she were more or less secluded during the hellenistic times versus the classical period

411 BC during the festival in Lenaia in Athens, in the end stages of the Peloponnesian war, Aristophanes’ comedy Lysistrate was played on stage for the first time. Despite the fact that the Athenian woman didn’t have a voice in the public sphere, she not only dominates the story in the play, but also became the focus of the audience through the staging of the play.        My purpose with this study has been to examine through a close reading of the play how Aristophanes portrays the women in the text, and what might have been his purpose with the portrayal.        Aristophanes’ depiction of the women in Lysistrate is not only based on the conventions of his contemporary society, but also on more complex structures that form the aspects of how the women are shaped in the text.        In accordance with these structures the women are portrayed in a ridiculing and exaggerated way, especially when it comes to sexuality and all kinds of mischief. This results in a comical portrayal of the women. But they are also portrayed in a more sensible and serious way in their political statements, where they voice criticism and question the war and how it is handled. The women advocate their own right to take part in and give advice on political affairs in war as well as in peace.        The comical and the political portrayal of the women interact with each other and form a whole that might constitute Aristophanes’ purpose with his writing of the women. The political message, that Aristophanes’ wishes for an end to the war and that the women should be allowed to give advice, is clear, while the comical portrayal ensures that it comes across more as a wish, than as a political urging.