Womens Social and Religious Roles in Ancient Rome, Athens, Sparta, and Egypt - Essay Example

Women could be singers in the temple, appeasing the gods, as well as mimicking goddesses, and having significant duties in the Egyptian religious culture. They even ruled Egypt on numerous occasions all through history, either mutually with their husbands, sons, or in their right (Gay 33). They were decisive, formidable and competent in that responsibility. Unlike the place of women in many other ancient cultures, like that of Greece, the Egyptian woman appears to have benefited from the same economic and legal rights as the Egyptian man. The women were allowed additional rights and civil liberties than Greek women that were required to live in a less equivalent Greek system (Gay 42).

In Sparta, young women were educated in writing and reading and could take part in sports; they were considered more as equals to men. The aim was to generate women who would give birth to strong, healthy babies. At age 18, citizen women had the freedom of moving around while enjoying a great deal of freedom. Spartan women could control and own their wealth. In war times, the wife was anticipated to manage her husband's property and to protect it against revolts and invaders until her husband came back. It is only in Sparta did that women had economic influence and power. Moreover, their husbands listened to them (David, Murray and Brody 172).

On the other hand, Athenian girls and women were kept at home without taking part in politics or sports. Wives were regarded as their husband’s property and were responsible for weaving spinning, and other domestic arts. Some women had high posts in the custom events as well as Athens’ religious life where the patron was the goddess Athena. Most wealthy women were mostly restricted to staying at home and running the household except courtesans and prostitutes (David, Murray and Brody 354). Women had fewer rights in male-governed Athens, and their treatment was at times hardly better than that of domestic slaves.

Generalizations on the women's status in the ancient world are usually tricky, and never pronounced than in the instance of Rome in which practice and theory were frequently so far apart. Numerous Athenian men appear to have looked upon their wives as at top indispensable inconveniences. However, Roman men had a very high worth on home, marriage and the family, and this led to a big difference in society's handling of women (Hekster, Olivier, Schmidt-Hofner, and Witschel 239). There was no time in the history of Rome where women were permitted to work in a public office or the government. In the early Republic days, women were not even permitted to make suggestions. By the start of the Empire several men sought and even followed their wives’ advice. It was correct to do so, as long as the advice was administered in private, and the husband would not create a big deal out of it. Reputable women were not allowed to be wandering around unaccompanied outside, but in some way, they could still have a life further than the home (Hekster, Olivier, Schmidt-Hofner, and Witschel 253).