Athenian Women as Anti-War Heroes, Role Reversal and Power Play in Aristophanes’ Lysistrata

Abstract

This research focuses on Athenian women as an epitome of female authority which challenges the male supremacy and strive for their struggle of political empowerment. Role reversal aspect is found in Aristophanes’ play Lysistrata hidden under the mask of erotic humor and this play aims to highlight that facet. For this purpose, this research will use frameworks regarding gender and power from the book Gender and Power: Society, the Person and Sexual Politics by Raewyn Connell. 411 B.C. Greece was a democratic state ruled predominantly by males and hence the society was affected by the phallic roles. So, this paper will analyze the play Lysistrata from the perspective of gender inequality faced by women and will attempt to observe the limited female involvement at the state level and male opposition to female struggle for political inclusion. This article will study the play on multiple differing interconnecting facets which are female struggle against the predetermined societal roles, the motive of using sex strike as a tool to challenge male dictatorship and its modern day application. It will also explore that how the dominant personality of Lysistrata and the how the comparison of domestic households to the state affairs was used as political tools for challenging the male authority. This research concludes with a comparison of Athenian women with the modern day women and the message it instills for the modern world. Although women are socialized to stay the subservient and nurturing gender for males, but this article calls for an equal division of labor amongst all without any discrimination and prejudice.