Women's Life in Greece and Rome: A Source Book in Translation

by Mary R. Lefkowitz (Editor), Maureen B. Fant (Editor)

Now in its fourth edition, this sourcebook examines the public and private lives and legal status of Greek and Roman women. The texts represent women of all social classes, from public figures remembered for their deeds, to priestesses, poets, and intellectuals, to working women, such as musicians, wet nurses, and prostitutes, to homemakers. The editors have selected texts from hard-to-find sources, such as inscriptions, papyri, and medical treatises, many of which have not previously been translated into English. The resulting compilation is both an invaluable aid to research and a clear guide through this complex subject.

Building on the third edition's appendix of updates, the fourth adds many new and unusual texts and images, as well as such student-friendly features as a map and chapter overviews. Many notes and explanations have been revised with the non-classicist in mind.

[From the back cover of the book]

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Ancient History, Greece, Feminism, Classics, School

592 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1982

About the author

Mary R. Lefkowitz (born April 30, 1935), American scholar of Classics. She studied at Wellesley College before obtaining a Ph.D. in Classical Philology from Radcliffe College in 1961. Lefkowitz has published on subjects including mythology, women in antiquity, Pindar, and fiction in ancient biography.
She came to the attention of a wider audience through her criticism of the claims of Martin Bernal in Black Athena: The Afroasiatic Roots of Classical Civilization in her book Not Out of Africa: How Afrocentrism Became an Excuse to Teach Myth As History. In Black Athena Revisited (1996), which she edited with Guy MacLean Rogers, her colleague at Wellesley College, the ideas of Martin Bernal are further scrutinized.

Reviews

[Valerie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This excellent collection of primary source material from women was eye opening about life and social customs in Greece and Rome.

[Pilar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Útil como libro de referencia. Bien oganizado y bastante completo.

[Sam Grace · Rating 5 out of 5]

You wanna understand women in ancient Greece? Buy this book and Sue Blundell's Women in Ancient Greece.

[Danielle Altrogge · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good resource. Has lots of treasures and gems with lots of dry stuff too.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Women’s Life in Greece and Rome is such a fascinating collection — I really like how it brings together original sources to show the everyday realities of women instead of just repeating what historians say. It makes the ancient world feel a lot more real and relatable. If anyone’s ever thought about translating or even publishing books like this for wider audiences, this service might be useful: https://www.translation.pk/book-trans...

[kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

"sappho's poems about wanting to take a nap on a girls tiddy....very validating" - zoom classmate
"thank you for sharing" - my boy prof adam
But also kinda fire and i think i'll enjoy reading this for the years to come. CLASS 261 fire course if anyones wondering.

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic weapon in the fight to understand the lives of women in classical antiquity. The sources are diverse, well organised and invaluable.

[M · Rating 2 out of 5]

Just okay.

[Fiona Montgomery]

Strangle organized like a kind of dictionary of references. But how it was presented made me distrustful of its contents. There weren’t a lot of sections anyway that interested me.

[Isabella · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this for a class, but genuinely found it both educational and entertaining. I also liked that it was basically only ancient texts cited

[Asha · Rating 5 out of 5]

This got me through my EPQ, I will be forever grateful 💗