Women in Roman Society

The roman empire was considered one of the most known and influencial empires of the ancient world.They are also behind many of todays most modern technologies and civilisations.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Women in Roman Society specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More In ancient world, the role of women in every society was well defined though very controversial in many societies.In ancient Rome,Noble women were considered a lot freer than their Greek counterparts.They were accorded citizenship and enjoyed a lot of freedom outside politics. On the contrary however, these women were not allowed to contest for political office or take part in elections (Bauman, 1998). Despite this disadvantage however, women enjoyed alternative freedom economically and could even air their opinions on politics. It is difficult to curve out the general role of women in ancient Rome for the reason that their statuses were widely varied ; there were women of little influence like poor fish mongers to wealthy daughters of politicians who were more likely to leav a legacy during their time. The wealthy women had slaves do all their household chores including daily routines like washing their female master’s hands and face.The slaves would also bathe their masters and spend hours fixing their nails, hair and eyes. The wealthy women on the other hand spent most of their time relaxing, commanding slaves and planning amusement parties for their husbands and themselves. In regular households, the women were taksed with bringing up the children and house keeping. It is also worth noting that since there was no means of family planning, the women bore many children and were pregnant most of their adult lives. Men worked in the fields until about noon and spent the afternoons relaxing with fellow men at entertainment spots. It was believed among the Romans that women be under a man as their guradian owing to their wea kness in physique. A womans guradian would thus be her father during her early life before she got married and later her husband in marriage. In the event that the father died before the woman was old enough to get married, then a relative would be assigned to be her guardian by her father in will or by a government offficial. In terms of education, girls and boys enjoyed the same treatment but only until the end of primary education. Upon completion of primary education, only daughters of aristocratic families went on with their schooling. The rest of the women would be trained in singing and dancing.Advertising Looking for essay on history? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More In this culture, marriages were arranged. Bride price had to be paid by the groom’s family and its value was determined by the perceived social status of his family. The marriages were arranged much earlier than they would occur. The women were betro thed at a very early age and bred to an age where they would then be handed over to their husbands. The betrothed women were forced to live lives with a limited social circle because perceived flirting with any other man other than the ones they were betrothed to was deemed ill manners. The roman women gained a lot of freedom upon marriage and were treated like their husbands companions unlike the Greeks who oppressed their wives (Roman Society, 2004). The wives shared with their husbands in authority over their slaves and children. They also enjoyed the right to visitors, shopping and movement. Despite all this freedom enjoyed by the roman woman, there were a few unwritten laws that governed her behaviour both in public and private. A Roman woman was expected to sit upright while attending parties with her husband. In addition, she would only be allowed to take grape juice while her husband enjoyed wine and could recline his seat to relax. The rules on wine were later to be relaxed allowing the woman to join her husband in enjoying wine. This era made the roman women some of the least oppressed at that time in the world (Women in Roman Society, 2006). In this world of oppression particularly towards slaves, there were only a hand full of women who worked as doctors, hair dressers and nurses. It has been reported that there were some female gladiators who fought in an arena for the amusement of crowds. Female gladiators however did not have helmets on during these reported fights. From the information gathered above, it is very hard to draw a clear line that would define the role of a roman woman. It is in fact easier to define the different roles of different women with different social and family statuses. Perhaps it would be even easier to categorise the women in order to understand their roles better. There were the wealthy and powerful women who had power over slaves and entire households and did nothing but be served and plan parties with their friends. Secondly is the woman in the average household who enjoyed some freedom but still had to do all the house keeping and ensure that her house was in order. The last group to be observed is the class of slaves. Even in an empire where women enjoyed relative liberty, slaves continued to be oppressed and were forced to do hard jobs including petty tasks like washing their master’s faces and bathing fellow women.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Women in Roman Society specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Reference List Bauman, Richard.1998. Women and Politics in Ancient Rome, Introduction, New York: Questia  Roman Society. 2004. On-line. Web. Women in Roman Society. 2006. On-line. Available from internet, http://www.historylink102.com/. This essay on Women in Roman Society was written and submitted by user Brantley Wise to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.