Essays on Lysistrata

The first feminist ever

There has always existed a confrontation between men and women. It all started perhaps in old Greek and since then continues to remain the point at issue. It is considered that men are still “the strongest gender” and that the world stubbornly retains a male-dominated, competitive one. However, time changes and now women are making their best just as men do. They master new professions which have always expected to be exceptionally men’s one. Moreover, they are doing it perfectly and achieve great success. There is nothing impossible for an ambitious, hard-working woman especially when she is meditating ...

Speakers in this comedy depict a woman passively suffering from the war, as opposed to actively suffering Men create war. But these passive women are suddenly extremely active as soon as Lysistrata manages to send them to fight with men. Lysistrata in the prologue of the play is relatively easy to manage to carry out a specific women's "strike": On the initiative of energetic and enterprising Lysistrata, the women all gathered her solemnly pledge to each other to refuse to weasel their husbands as long as they do not stop the war. The main figure of this opening ...

Concept of justice

If there is one thing that deserves credit in the existence of mankind is the presence of a woman. Though they are neglected, abused and discriminated, they are the ones who hold the earth together. In Greek for example; antigone, Lysistrata and Odyssey were well nurtured and they stand out above their heads to be noticed as women of high integrity, determined to do their duties and uphold the moral principles of ancient woman. They always fight for there rights and demand justice in every action (Sophocles 665). Justice is an act of bringing people together in a community where there ...

With modern feminist movements, there has been much speculation as to the role of women throughout history, including that of ancient women. Some feminists would suggest that ancient women had no rights, power, importance, or prospects. While it is true that women had lesser rights and power than men, their role was considered important, and women of some places held more power than others. This is clearly shown through a study of ancient texts, written by both men and women. Firstly, it is important to realize that women were oppressed and expected to be submissive to men. For example, ...

Analysis of a World Text

What is the main theme of the play? First performed in 411 B.C., Lysistrata has now achieved “a fairly permanent place in the modern theatre” (Robson 192), although in the past it was often censored for what Harsh calls its “low comedy” (292). The main character’s name – Lysistrata – is one that was given to girls in classical Athens, but, like most names, it has a meaning. It means “Dissolver of Armies” (Tritle 59) or “Disbander of Armies” (Henderson 35), and it seems fitting, therefore, that the prevailing critical consensus is that Lysistrata is about peace: Tritle even dubs it “ ...

Literature as a socializing force

Literature texts have been used throughout the centuries as a socializing tool. This is because it generally describes customs of the time which includes social behavior expectations. While today we have Internet and movies, there were times where these did not exist. The form of entertainment was solely through literature. The way it was exhibited was in the form of plays that the general public could participate. This was the case of the Greek Civilization. Literature of that time describes how everyday life was, how women and men behave and how different groups of society behaved. Because of the ...

Question 1

- Chorus Chorus is a literary device that refers to the situation when people do something in unison. It was used in the ancient Greek drama. As seen in Lysistrata when the old women chastised the younger women when they said they would not give in to the demands of their husbands (pg 149). - Dramatic irony Dramatic irony is seen when the audience or readers get to know certain things that certain characters in the play do not know. An example of dramatic irony in ‘trifles’ is when the women find the evidence to show that ...

What are women without men? Truly, it is probably hard to imagine a world where there are no men to perform all the backbreaking labor and make all the unfazed decisions needed to run a society smoothly. The men were outside, making a living, while the women stay at home, tend to the children and maintain the household. This has been the long-time standard until women started to feel that they can do more than that. Given that train of thought, it has come to this era in which women can go toe-to-toe with men in almost every field of expertise. This ...

In the play, Lysistrata the struggle for peace negations by women explicitly reflects their position as well as influence in the society. Their ability to influence the making of major decisions is clearly seen in the manner they all unite for a common course and stick to it to the very end until their objective is achieved. The interminable Peloponnesian war is seemingly the nightmare of the women in the play, as they feel neglected and cut out by their men all because of the war. It also acts as a revelation as women start to realize that they and ...