When asked to describe the role of a woman in ancient Rome and/or Greece, most people would quickly imagine a woman who sits at home, spends her days taking care of the household, and expresses feminine characteristics and behavior. If asked to picture the role of a male during this same time period, many would describe a dedicated warrior with bold traits. In the Aeneid, Virgil depicts characters in a way that simultaneously works as a disobedience to traditional gender roles while still exhibiting ideal traditional values. The most common Anglo-Saxon characteristic for women is to act as a peacemaker and often the significance of women in tales was minimized because of the importance of heroism. I will be analyzing the treatment and presentation of women in comparison to the men in the Aeneid and Beowulf to prove the importance of female characters in both epics.
The Aeneid is a tale that pushes the boundaries for female characters, such as Dido and Camilla did, and take on the role that traditionally would be given to men. Some may argue that this isn’t a big deal because of their impact to Aeneas’ story, yet Virgil pays tribute to the exceptionality of the female gender. The reader observes how the female characters influence Aeneas’ journey and act as a guiding force. Respectively, the foreign female characters embody some Roman virtues yet threaten the cultural expectations of ancient Rome. Dido, Penthesilea, and Camilla, represent women who are set to fail in a world dominated by males. The Aeneid not only establishes a Roman identity that recognizes women and the necessity of them for continued existence, but also what the extent of their roles is. It also briefly touches on the problem of consumption and incorporation of different cultures into the ancient society. Virgil uses his poem as a platform to explain a Roman identity and the qualities of its citizens while identifying the limits of society and the duties to surpass gender roles.
A vital element of the Roman Empire was a comeback of the traditional Roman values, which included reinforcing the traditional gender roles. Accordingly, Virgil created three strong female characters; Camilla, Dido, and Penthesilea — who symbolize what takes place when women don’t fall under the cultural norms. Yet, the three characters embody certain traits that would be appropriate for any Roman to have, such as patriotism. Other qualities they hold, are the same virtues that Roman men strive to prove in their own lives, and not being appropriate for a Roman female to possess, whether it being in the political office or in battlefield. Ultimately, Virgil uses his poem as a large platform to illustrate how females who fall outside of the restraints that the male dominated society has placed upon them are doomed to failure due to demonstrating admirable characteristics that are only socially acceptable for males.
Women in this time period really only had one duty to fulfill which was to produce children and a home. They received little to no political and legal rights and overall were perceived as inferior to males. The preconceived notions held by the common citizens about gender stereotypes were even validated by philosophical theories that agreed with the stereotypes. Because of the supposed emotional, mental, and physical inferiority, women had no place in the public arena of warfare and politics. According to Aristotle, “the male is by nature fitter for command than the female” (Aristotle 2). This was the common theory that dominated classical society and a major part of history.
Noble women played a significant part in heroic Anglo-Saxon culture and had a crucial influence in hall ceremonies and keeping an active participation in diplomacy. In Beowulf, Wealhtheow suitably plays a peacemaker role as she greets Beowulf and his entourage, then serves as cup-bearer, ensuring the diplomatic relations amongst all present. For some it may be tempting to quickly label the women introduced in this literature piece as helpless, marginalized maids pushed to the side of the narrative, this is actually not the case. Despite being a patriarchal governed society, Anglo-Saxon culture demonstrates that females are often pictured in roles which, while far from the equality sought today, are invested with more importance and capability than more modern texts.