Gender and Sexuality

Question 1

How were girls educated in ancient Greece?

Answer 1

Girls were educated at home and underwent domestic training

Question 2

How were “young wives” educated in Greece?

Answer 2

Young wives were basically taught by their husband or his family of the domestic duties to perform.

Question 3

How were boys educated in ancient Greece and Rome?

Answer 3

Boys were educated in schools or at their own household if they were of a lower economic class.

Question 4

According to the ancients, when was the best time to train a girl on her domestic duties? Is it before or after marriage?

Answer 4

The premarital stage is believed as the best stage of life for girls and learning domestic duties was crucial

Question 5

What are the differences in coming-of-age rituals in the ancient times?

Answer 5

For women, their coming of age was only symbolized by them getting marriage, as it is the most important event for girls. It is not uncommon for girls to only be remembered for getting married.

Boys have more important events for their coming of age due to their importance to politics, economics and other civil duties. Moreover their frats also acted as their coming of age. Men had a public persona and it was important for boys to become more intune with their frats unlike girls who were be in another household as a result of marriage.

Question 6

Is there a connection between gender and child exposure?

Answer 6

Some evidence suggests that girls were exposed more than boys due to their gender.
There is evidence of a lack of females in ancient society.
As a result of this, a population crisis may have arisen
The value of the female body would have increased but this is only in theory, as there is no evidence to support it

Question 7

What was so important with children retaining their purity?

Answer 7

Purity was thought of the best way to commune with the gods thus it was though tot be vital for religious practices.

Question 8

What did girls need to have in order to be considered pure?

Answer 8

Girls needed to have their virginity

Question 9

How was the purity of girls protected in ancient Greece?

Answer 9

Girls were hardly exposed to the public except for rituals and religious practices (Greek). Morever, they hardly interacted with the opposite sex.

Question 10

Were girls in ancient Rome treated the same as girls in Greece?

Answer 10

No to an extent. Girls in the Roman period were not as locked down as Greek girls
They attended religious rituals and other public affairs such as celebrations and banquets. Girls and boys were expected not to be together at night time unless under adult supervision.

Similarly, Roman girls NEEDED to be virgins in order to get married

Question 11

Why were girls married off young during ancient times?

Answer 11

Girls were married off young so they there is a higher chance that she will be a virgin at marriage (Daphnis and Chloe)

Question 12

What were the consequences of a girl losing her virginity before marriage during ancient times? What happened to the male that raped or took the girl’s virginity?

Answer 12

Girls that lost their virginity were disowned and sent to slavery or sex work. Rapist property was sold off, and it was argued that rapist should have worse consequences OR they were forced to married the girl

Question 13

Is there an outlier for girls losing their virginity before marriage?

Answer 13

Slave girls were the outlier from this as they were property to their master’s whims, including sex

Question 14

Does the passage from manhood differ from the passage to womanhood regarding sexuality?

Answer 14

For boys, there is no obvious evidence that sex was a passage to manhood except for Daphnis and his sexual experience. In other words, boys were not expected to be virgins at marriage

Question 15

How did girls get their sexual education?

Answer 15

They had none; they were expected to only engage in sex at marriage

Question 16

How did boys receive their sexual education or experience?

Answer 16

There were various ways for boys to receive sexual experience and education.

1. Boys may have received their first sexual experience through a sex worker as brothels were not looked down upon in many greek and Roman cities
   2.Boys may have had their first sexual intercourse with household slaves, as slaves could not say no.
2. Pederastry

Question 17

What was Pederastry?

Answer 17

Another method was boys learned about sex through homosexual interaction. Mostly happened with the Elite classes as values that were taught and spread were of this Elite class

Question 18

Although pederasty is a form of pedophilia, what factors distinguish it from the sexual deviant act?

Answer 18

Pedophilia in modern and ancient term means sexual relations with a prepubescent child (more broader). Pederasty is more specific and what acts happened and rules and conventions were used to regulate it.

Question 19

Although pederasty is a form of pedophilia, what factors distinguish it from the sexual deviant act?

Answer 19

Pedophilia in modern and ancient term means sexual relations with a prepubescent child (more broader). Pederasty is more specific and what acts happened and rules and conventions were used to regulate it.

Question 20

What were the regulations used in pederasty? What was the purpose of it?

Answer 20

There were two roles, Eromenos (he that is loved) is the receiver and the Erastes (he doing the loving) is doing the action. This role has no reversal as the Eromenos HAS to be younger than the Erastes. The erastes is the dominant role and if there is any reversal of these roles, both parties will be greatly disgraced.

The purpose of pederasty was for the Erastes to educated the Eromenos. The Eromenos teach and educate the Eromenos on morals, social rules and teachings of being a man. The sexual activity that follows is secondary and should not be the main focus

Question 21

Was homosexuality between a man and a boy commonly accepted in ancient Greece and Rome?

Answer 21

Homosexuality was ONLY acceptable in pederasty as the means of education; other forms of homosexuality were not accepted

Question 22

What was the main motivation of pederasty?

Answer 22

Boys and males had the same interests, unlike a man and a women due to difference of social status and civil duties. it was thought that a man and women shared little interests. However, love between two males has the benefit of the two have more in common. In other words, the LOVE is stressed rather than the sexual love as the Erastes is supposed to have the noble intention of teaching the Eromenos

Question 23

How did Rome view Pederasty?

Answer 23

There was some condemnation for this practice as
it was illegal for someone to seduce a young boy citizen. However, it is suggested that pederasty between a slave boy and a master was ok as they were not a citizen.
The Imperial family was not excused either, emperors were condemned for engaging in pederasty or pedophilia with young boys.