WOMEN IN EARLY ROME AND CHINA

WOMEN IN EARLY ROME AND CHINA INTRODUCTION

Despite the different locations of Ancient Rome and China , the gender and sexuality of women from both places has become an interesting subject for analytical study . There are a lot of speculations about their similarities even though their so far away from each other . The study of women in history can be a helpful tool to understand how civilization systems have evolved throughout the years . The purpose of this is to compare and contrast the ancient Roman women and the early Chinese women

ROMAN

WOMEN

To further provide enough understanding about the two subjects being compared there is a necessity to understand both of them , starting off with the ancient women of Rome . Girls from Rome enjoyed a close if not the exact education as boys in early age . But mostly after primary education , it was mostly daughters of noble and rich families who pursued their education . Roman women were also taught how to dance sing , play the lire and even lectured about Latin and Greek literature as well

It was a custom in Rome to arrange marriages for little girls despite their youth . The girl would need to wait until she matures into an adult and then she would be married . Despite marriage , the women of Rome acquired freedom that is considerable . The early Romans however performed tight rules over their spouses , they were still better than the Greeks with regards to strictness with women . The Greeks even imprison their women at home . Family attraction for the Romans affected their social life and seemed to have lead to a more liberal outlook regarding women

Generally understood as her husband 's helper and companion , that was the perception of a Roman spouse . The wives would share the authority over slaves , their children and the entirety of the household . They had the freedom to receive guests , leave the house , visit other people 's houses or even go out to buy things . But there still existed the differences with regards to sexual preferences . During the early times of the Republic , women were forbidden to drink wine and were only allowed to drink grape juice instead

Despite the discrimination during the Roman times , Roman women could very well be concluded as the most free or liberated during that time period of the world . They were free to stand up for themselves . This would be evidently seen during the Roman women 's protests against the Oppian law

The Oppian Law was passed following the disastrous defeat of the Romans by Hannibal at the battle of Cannae (216 B .C . Because of the wars with Carthage , many men had died . Their wives and daughters had inherited their lands and monies , allowing many women to become quite rich . The state , in to help pay for the cost of the wars , decided to tap into women 's wealth by passing the Oppian Law . It limited the amount of gold women could possess and required that all the funds...