Jad Tabet
7664627
Wo-man
Euripides and Hesiod are both Greek tragedy writers. Euripides, born around 484 B.C., was wellknown for his plays. He was a contemporary wrier known for writing mythological theme and
about women. Hesiod shared a similar theme with Euripides as they both wright about women.
Hesiod was born around 700 B.C. He was one of the major writers during the Archaic Age. He
gained popularity for his outstanding poems. His two most popular poems are Theogony, and
Works and Days. Hesiod shared a common theme with Euripides, women, divine beings and
anger found in his popular play, Hippolytus. In these artworks, women are viewed as cruel
creatures with no value. Maidens where disliked because they used men, they where created to
be evil and they where disliked because they caused lots of anger and in some cases even death.
In both of Hesiods pomes, Theogony and Works and Days, Hesiod describes and illustrates
women in a similar way. In these poems, the maiden is girded, clothes, decked out by Athene,
however, this was by the command of her father Zeus. The maiden was given a crown of fresh
spring flowers. In Hesiods poem, Works and Days, Zeus also commanded Hephaestus, god of
fire, to mold a clay of a modest maid1; Aphrodite, goddess of sexuality, to shed grace upon
(the maiden)1 and Hermes, slayer of Argus, to put in her a shames mind and a deceitful
nature1. The characteristics found in this pomes describe women as creatures that misbehave
because there thought cause sorrow and mischief to men22. This description indicates that
thoughts women have can potential cause men into doing shameful things. In Hesiods,
Theogony, women as thefts just like drones (that) stay inside in their roofed hives and cram
their bellies full of what (the bees) harvest 3. This example is used to describe how housewives
stay at home, dont work and collect the earrings made by a man. In theses artworks women are
11 Works and days (ll. 60-68)
22 Works and days (ll. 90-105)
33 Theogony (ll. 607-608)
preserved as only causing dilemma and obstacles to men by stealing their earnings and their
belongings
Hesiod would write and describe women as misleading and foolish. In Euripides Hippolytus,
Phaidra, Hippolytus step mom and Theseus wife, falls in love with her step son Hippolytus.
Hippolytus is petrified by this rejects her, Phaidra hangs herself4. Hippolytus rejection made
Phaidra sorrowful and hung herself. Because she fell in love with her step-son, her husband,
Hippolytuss father, cursed his son that lead to his death. Phaidras act caused her husband to
become insane and horrified Hippolytus before his death. In this image, we have the insanity of
Theseus that cursed
his son and,
unfortunately, lead
to the death of his
son Hippolytus. In
this play, the
woman, Phaidra,
caused a feud and the
sanity of men and even death.
Men are not the only beings that dont like women. In these artworks, the divine beings have
their own perceptions on women. In Theogony, the divine beings created the maiden to please
the heart of Zeus5. Pallas Athena and the lame smith created this being understanding that it
44 Hippolytus (CWGM, Hippolytos p.88)
55 Theogony (ll.587)
must please Zeus, who then made them evil. In Works and days, the divine gods created the first
woman, Pandora. Pandora was a gift from Zeus to Epimetheus. Prometheus, told Epimetheus to
take the gift back to Zeus because he did not trust this gift. Epimetheus did not take this advice
and the gift from the gods turned evil. Pandora was given the gift of a jar from Zeus. Once
Pandora opened this gift, she released evil sorrow and mischief to men. Although the gods tried
to create a being that was good for men, Zeus made
Pandora evil. In Hippolytus, Phairda is given the
image of a horrifying creature that falls in love with
he step-son. Athene curses Phaidra and she finds
herself stuck and unable to stop loving Hippolytus as
a lover, she then commits suicide. In this play
Phaidra is controlled by the Athene, just like
Pandora was controlled by Zeus Athenes father. In this image we have Athene dressing Pandora.
In all three artworks, women have been created with evil. In Hippolytus, Phaedra was evil to her
husband and her step-son. Her love trap leads her into misleading both of these men. Because of
this her new love, Hippolytus, was been killed by her husband. In Theogony, the maiden was
created to enrage men, because men stole fire from heaven. Zeus avenged men by sending men a
gift, Pandora. With all the anger that Zeus had towards men, Zeus gave Pandora a jar with evil in
it. Once the jar was open, Pandora became evil. In women where crated to cause mischief to
men. The creation of the gods was based on anger. Olympus created Pandora from the ground up
with water and earth to form a clay model. This is symbolic and indicated that the first women
were created from the ground up. This can be interoperated in the sense that Pandora raised from
hell the place of all evil, mischief and sorrow.
To conclude, both Euripides and Hesiod used women to talk about how the way they can be
misleading, evil and in some cases cause a death. Euripides play demonstrates how women can
be difficult and can also be controlled especially with love. In similarity, in Hesiods Theogony,
the maiden woman is a thief and causes pain to men. In Hesiods, Works and days, Pandora is a
gift that had opened a jar full of evil, misconduct and sadness. Trying to understand these
creatures made it impossible for men. Although these artworks where written in different time,
writhen before Christ with a couple hundred years apart, both Euripides and Hesiod had the same
theme and views on women in their Artworks rather if it was a play or a poem. Now in 2016,
have the global view on women change?
Reference:
1) Gill, N. S. "Learn About the Third of the Great Tragedians." [Link] Education. N.p.,
n.d. Web. 18 Feb. 2016.
2) Gill, N. S. "Hesiod." [Link] Education. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Feb. 2016.
3) Clay, Jenny Strauss. "Orientations: The Theogony." Hesiod's Cosmos (n.d.): 12-30. Print. 18 Feb.
2016.
4) "Hesiod: Works And Days." Hesiod: Works and Days. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Feb. 2016.
5) "PANDORA : The First Woman | Greek Mythology, W/ Pictures." PANDORA : The First Woman
| Greek Mythology, W/ Pictures. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Feb. 2016.
<[Link]
6) "PANDORA : The First Woman | Greek Mythology, W/ Pictures." PANDORA : The First Woman
| Greek Mythology, W/ Pictures. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Feb. 2016.
<[Link]
Image
1) N.d. Stilus. Web. 18 Feb. 2016.
<[Link]
2) N.d. Theoi. Web. 18 Feb. 2016.
<[Link]
Assignment Rubric
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A
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