Lysistrata by Aristophanes
Lysistrata by Aristophanes is a classical play about a woman named Lysistrata in Greece. She gathers women from all over Greece, on every side of the war, for a meeting during the Peloponnesian War. They are all tired of the war and want it to end. Lysistrata suggests that they all refuse to have sex with their husbands in order to gain peace throughout Greece. She is not sure how this will go over because it appears that she believes most women are weak. She may believe this simply because the women of Greece put up with their husbands and everytihng that they do. Lysistrata is an exception to this. At first, the women refuse and they cannot imagine anything worse. Calonicé says, “anything, anything but that! Bid me go through fire, if you will; but to rob us of the sweetest thing in the world, dear, dear Lysistrata.” Eventually they agree and all take an oath to abstain from sex with their husbands. Do you think that this will successfully end the war as they intend? I do believe that after some pushback, the war will most likely end due to the wives’ protest. Lysistrata is clearly a leader in her community and I do not believe that many women could have convinced the other women like she does. Lysistrata is running the show; telling everyone what is best and keeping them in check. After all, the strike is her idea and she organizes it. Lysistrata seems to be more advanced than the other women, which is evident in the way that she conveys her thoughts as how others treat her. So far this play has feminist characteristics in a time and place where women had no rights. Women having this much influence was probably comical to the male audience at the time.
This is a good question. As I am reading the story I wonder how affective the women’s actions are going to be and if it will actually make a difference with the war. I predict that for majority of the time, it will be a challenge for the women to stop the war, but through their protests, Lysistrata and her companions will change the way of life in Greece at the end. It will be a long journey for the women because not all are like Lysistrata, who is willing to do actions out of the norm. Lysistrata tells her friends “We must refrain from all the touch of baubled love… Why do you turn your backs? Where are you going?” She is the one is willing to change the easy, daily lifestyle of a woman so that all of Greece would not suffer through battles anymore. Lysistrata seems to be the only woman to have this mindset though, as the others are very timid and not in an agreement with her idea. “No I won’t do it. Let the war proceed”. “O please give me fire instead”. This will make the process longer if it not all of the women are not willing to cooperate with this event. I think that it will also be a challenge for them to stop the war because they are women. The women are known to “husbands to be patted and put into good temper: servants to be poked out: children washed or soothed with lullays or fed with mountains of pap”. The men might think their protest is just a joke and will not take it seriously at first. But, since it is something not regular, could it actually make the men listen? How will the men or the rest of the people of Greece react to this protest? Will there mostly be anger or acceptance towards the women?
ReplyDeleteThe second part of Lysistrata deals with the first direct encounter between the men and women of Greece. The Chorus of Women and the Chorus of Old Men go back and forth about the war and the women’s protest. The Magistrate confronts Lysistrata but other women back her up while the Magistrate’s officers abandon the scene. The Magistrate wants to seize Lysistrata but she and the other women will not let that happen. The protest has begun and the men will soon react. I think that at first, they will not take the women seriously and try to convince them to have sex or otherwise, just force it. Once they realize that the women are serious and committed to their protest, they will probably become angry with the women and possibly get violent. They are not immediately going to end the war just for their wives. There will probably be some deliberation and negotiating that must be done first. The men are proud and will not want to feel controlled by the women, even if they are right. Lysistrata tells the Magistrate that ending the war would be very simple if any of them had common sense. Lysistrata compares ending the war to untangling thread: “when we are winding thread, and it is tangled, we pass the spool across and through the skein, now this way, now that way; even so, to finish off the war, we shall send embassies hither and thither and everywhere, to disentangle matters” (22). While Lysistrata may be oversimplifying the war a bit, she is not wrong about the solution. Do you think that men will come to agree with Lysistrata and find the simple solution to ending the war? Will they want to think of their own solution rather than listening to a women’s ideas?
DeleteIn the third part of the play, as the women are staying in the Acropolis, keeping them from temptation, the men are struggling to go fight in war because of the pains they face as they are not with their wives. Men run to their wives hoping that their beloved companions would return to them, saving them from their agony. The women torture them though by agreeing they will help their husbands, but prolong the process by grabbing different provisions that are “necessary”. Soon the Athenian and Spartan ambassador have had enough with this torture and go to the Acropolis as well, hoping to talk with Lysistrata and solve this problem. I think the men will end up going with Lysistrata’s proposal: they can have their women back as long as there is peace between the two regions. I do not think that they would have completely wanted to go with Lysistrata’s idea, but it seems to be the only way for their pain to leave. They do not come up with a different solution because pain is overtaking them, and are willing to take any opportunity for it to go away. As the two ambassadors face one another, they both agree that “‘Let us call Lysistrata since she alone can settle the Peace terms’” (323). They both know that no matter how hard they would try to fight it, the ambassadors would have to go to Lysistrata, a woman, for help. I noticed a theme in the story of Lysistrata. Appearance vs reality. In its society, it seems that women are the ones who are frail and bashful and the men are strong and brave. Based on the events of the story though, it seems to contradict that impression. The women are strong and standing their ground as the men are calling out for them, complaining about the troubles they are facing. As one of the men cries out to his wife in the Acropolis, her response is: “‘I love him O so much! but he won’t have it. Don’t call me down to him’” (316). She is standing her ground while the man cries in pain. Do you think the men are seen as weaker in this play? Are the women shown as stronger?
DeleteI really like everything you said in that comment, especially the part about appearance versus reality. Men are naturally thought of as stronger than women and this views is held mostly by men which is who this play is for. I do think, however, that the women are portrayed as being much stronger than the men. That quote about the man crying out and the woman standing her ground was a good example. At this point in the plot, the women are not only refusing se with their husbands, but they are also trying to seduce them and drive them crazy. Their goal here is just to reach a peace treaty at a faster pace. The methods are working and all of the men miss their wives. There is more arguing between the two choruses and tension is rising. The men are almost at their breaking points and will soon be willing to end the war in order to get their wives back. The men may even be desperate enough to listen to Lysistrata and ask for her assistance in attaining peace between everyone. They are not willing to give up sex with their wives just to keep fighting in a war where they are losing lives. Most of the women are doing well and standing their ground but some are getting restless and trying to leave the acropolis where all of the women are staying. Lysistrata is getting annoying by the women’s weakness and their desires. She lectures and tries to motivate them, saying, “You wicked women, have done with your falsehoods! You want your husbands, that’s plain enough. But don’t you think they want you just as badly? They are spending dreadful nights, oh! I know that well enough. But hold out, my dears, hold out! A little more patience, and the victory will be ours” (27). She assures them that this should not last much longer. Do you think that after the war ends, the men of Greece will generally, respect the women more than they did before?
DeleteI like the question you asked. When reading this play, you would generally wonder if this protest would actually make a difference for the women in the future and not just stop the war. I think that the men will start to have respect for the women but not out of willingness though. I think they would respect the women through fear. All the men of Greece suffered through this torture that they could not bear. Husbands would cry out “‘All grace is wiped from life since she went away. O sad, sad am I When there I enter on that loneliness And wine is unvintaged of the sun’s flavor,’” (316). Everything in life has lost meaning to them since they have not been able to have sex. The husbands cannot stand this feeling of depression and disturbance, going through such unexpected discomfort. They would fear that if they go to war again, they will not receive the pleasure that they desire. I feel like the men of Greece will respect their wishes of their wives because it benefits them. The men are not obligated to treat the women any differently, the only rule for them is to not have war. Lysistrata did accomplish her goal “‘From Peloponnesus and Boeotia, then Hand in hand we’ll [women] rescue Greece’” (290). They did rescue Greece from continuing on the battles and saved their men from risking their lives every day. The women made themselves known to the men, causing the attention they wanted to bring. I do not think, though, that they made a difference in their stance in society. I think the men will still expect them to care for the children, please the husbands, and clean the house. The women will be treated differently in a way where their husbands realize that their wives have a voice, but yet, their tasks and daily lifestyle will not change. What do you think the sex strike means to these men? Do you think the men’s lifestyle will change?
DeleteI think that the sex strike was basically the men’s worst fear come to life. I do not think that their lifestyle is necessarily going to change in the way that they act but it will be more of a mindset change. I agree that they might not change the way that they treat women but they will have to have more respect now that they have seen what the women really can do on their own. The women proved, in a way, that they do not need mean but the men have only proved that they do the women. In the end, the men of Greece end the Peloponnesian war, with the help of Lysistrata. The men know that they must end the war in order to get their wives back but they do not quite know how. They call on Lysistrata for help because they respect her more than any of the other women and she has previously claimed that coming to a peace treaty would be easy. She gathers all of the feuding areas of Greece and she reminds them of the peace that they have had in the past. The men all agree with Lysistrata and go with what she says. She acquires the peace and the men are forced to change, at least a little bit. Why do you think that men respect Lysistrata so much more than the other women when she is the one who organized the whole strike that they all hated so much? When Lysistrata enters, an Athenian man exclaims, “hail, the bravest and boldest of woman kind… call up all your skill and artfulness. Lo! The foremost men in Hellas, seduced by your fascinations, are agreed to entrust you with the task of ending their quarrels” (36). Why do they trust her more than themselves?
DeleteI think that the men seem to have more respect for Lysistrata because it seems that she was able to create a lasting strike. The first thing I notice is that, like you said, Lysistrata started this protest. “‘So fine it comes to this—Greece saved by Woman!’” (289). Her starting a strike herself, as a woman, is an indication of how fearless she is to get something done. None of the women are like her, they are afraid of leaving the daily routine and experiencing something new. The reason the men seem to have so much more respect for Lysistrata is because she sees herself as someone equal to the men. That she is capable of creating attention if she wanted to. When she is talking to the Magistrate, she is not afraid to stand her ground, “‘to take first the treasury out of our management, and so stop the war through the absence of gold’” (303). Lysistrata is not afraid to tell this man what she thinks. Secondly, the way she has control of all the women. Women would try to sneak out of the Acropolis but she would catch them, commanding them to come back in. the men cry and come to her because she is the one that is controlling their wives. She is in charge and seems to have the answer to the cure of their pain. I think that they come to her because they do not see any other option. They obviously are in so much physical pain that they cannot function mentally. The men do not care that she is a woman, they only care that she is human who will can take away their discomfort during this brutal time. I think that Lysistrata is seen as a leader in the story but also a cure. Her strike stopped the Peloponnesian War, having the men not risk their lives every day and for the wives to spend more time with their husbands. She took away the men’s suffering by giving back their lives. She also helped herself by making it known to the world that women can hold power too.
DeleteGood job tracking the tensions at the various levels--between the city states, the men and women, Lysistrata and the Magistrate, Lysistrata and the other women, etc. You mention comedy just once, and I'm wondering if you noticed any other aspects that might justify this play's categorization as a comedy, besides the fact that the main characters don't die! Is it mostly situational comedy or also at the level of the lines? MOWAW is sometimes harder to locate in comedy than in other genres, but I see Rachel points out one of her favorite theme topics in appearance vs. reality, the theme there being how the strength of women is different than is usually assumed? Thanks for digging deep. Consider how your questions could focus more on technique and meaning than on plot prediction. Grade on Portals.
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