Caitlin Coomes
Gender and Sexuality in Antiquity
2/19/02
Women as Undeveloped Men
Even the hard science of medicine is not always devoid of social information about the culture in which it is written. In ancient Greece, medical texts such as AristotleÕs The Female Role in Generation as well as The Seed and The Nature of the Child, both Hippocratic texts, all reinforced the idea that women are the result of weaker sperm despite differences in the specifics of their arguments. Aristotle wrote about the equivalence of menstrual fluid and male semen, except for menstrual fluidÕs inability to generate offspring. The Hippocratic texts concluded that both partners contain sperm, and the combination of the strong male sperm and the strong female sperm creates a male child. The texts also mention the similarities between women and children, which explains the similar treatment of the two in Greece. The connection between eunuchs and women was also pointed out by reinforcing the physical semblance between unfertile men and mature women. All of these arguments come together to scientifically explain the female inferiority to the male sex, an all-encompassing aspect of society in ancient Greece. The medical texts of ancient Greece provide the scientific base for the conclusion of the society that women are undeveloped men and attempt to explain the patriarchal hierarchy of Grecian society that severely limited womenÕs rights and viewed them as second class citizens.
The subject of semen, its nature and its role in generation inspired theories centering on the maleÕs ability and the femaleÕs inability in both The Nature of the Child and AristotleÕs piece, The Female Role in Generation. According to the Hippocratic text The Nature of the Child, there is stronger and weaker sperm (346). On the subject of twins the reading states, Òthe pouch which receives thicker and stronger sperm will contain a male, while that which receives sperm which is more fluid and weaker will contain a femaleÓ(Lloyd ed., 346). Therefore a female is the result of weaker sperm, a weaker version of man. Similarly, Aristotle concludes that Òmenstrual fluid is a residue, and it is the analogous thing in females to semen in malesÓ (Fant and Lefkowitz, 339). He describes the Òmale as possessing the principle ofÉgenerationÓ (ibid.). The female is simply Òthat out of which the generated offspringÉcomesÓ since Òthe female does not contribute any semen to generationÓ (ibid.). The woman has the same qualities as the man, but they are the less productive and less capable versions of the male characteristics. Aristotle goes on to say, Òthe female, in fact, is female on account of inability of a sortÓ(ibid.). This inability of women is in direct relation to the ability of men. With this argument Aristotle portrays women to be an incapable model of men. Placing the two sexes on a spectrum Aristotle states, Òthe opposite of the male is the femaleÓ(ibid.). It cannot be said that there are no differences between the two sexes; however, by labeling them opposites Aristotle is lengthening the distance between the sexes in Grecian society. The Greeks attributed powerful, dominant, and intelligent characteristics to the men, and concluded that women must possess the opposites of all those things, such as weakness and submission. By tracing the inferiority of women in this Hippocratic text as well as in AristotleÕs text back to conception and the strength of the sperm, the position of men as the more suitable power holders gains credibility.
Different theories on the nature of sperm in the two sexes still present the women as a result of weaker sperm. The Seed, another Hippocratic text, argues that, Òboth partners alike contain both male and female sperm (the male being stronger than the female must of course originate from a stronger sperm)Ó (320). This same text goes on to state that strong sperm from both sexes results in a male, but when the weak sperm of the two sexes comes together the baby will be female (Lloyd ed., 320). This theory, that opposes AristotleÕs ideas in many ways, still implies that women are weaker models of the human species.
That the Greeks scientifically likened the female sex to children explains why they treated women and youth similarly in Grecian society. According to Aristotle, women are unable to generate offspring just as children are unable to reproduce. However, male children will mature into men at which point they leave women behind and begin to generate their own progeny. Similarly, it was believed that, Òwomen do not go bald because their nature is similar to that of children: both are incapable of producing seminal secretionÓ (Fant and Lefkowitz, 339). This reasoning allows men to transition to a more able state, but leaves the fully matured women far behind. Since the Greeks saw women as being similar to children not only physically, but also in their ignorance and dependence, then it follows that the men needed to ÒeducateÓ and control them as was the standard in Greece.
The physical differences between men and women are also used as evidence of the womenÕs inferiority. AristotleÕs statement that, Òa boy actually resembles a woman in physiqueÓ, could refer to the smaller, less muscular frame, the lack of facial hair as well as the higher voice (ibid.). The texts explain the Òobvious [female] deficiency in physique as compared with malesÓ saying, Òfemales are more neatly made and smoother than males, because the residue which goes to produce those characteristics in males is in females discharged together with the menstrual fluidÓ (ibid.). The patriarchy uses science to reason that females simply lack a biological characteristic common to men that makes them superior. The transition from boyhood to manhood which requires this ÒresidueÓ is not present in women which leaves them as second-rate organisms, a group that physiologically cannot mature to a higher state of productivity. In reference to eunuchs, castrated men, one medical text says, Òthe mutilation of just one part of them results in a great alteration...and in close approximation to the appearance of the femaleÓ (ibid.). Once these men lose a part of their anatomy that defines them as fertile men, they resemble women. Similarly, it is argued that, Òeunuchs, too, do not go bald because of their transition into the female stateÓ(ibid.). Aristotle adds, Òthis deformity constitutes a change from the male state to the femaleÓ (ibid.). If a male is unable to generate offspring he is immediately demoted back towards the feminine status, and the physical characteristics associated with the feminine become symbols of the inability to generate children as Aristotle argued. The similarities pointed out among boys, eunuchs, and women strengthens the common Grecian conception that women are undeveloped models of men and therefore do not deserve an equal voice or share of power in society.
Clearly, we cannot look at these medical texts without also analyzing their insights into the inequality of the sexes in Greek society. They all scientifically claim that women are conceived by a weaker sperm, despite discrepancies surrounding her inability or ability to play a role in the generation. This allows men a superior position even before birth. The condescending attitude towards women that directed men to educate them and regulate their behavior in ancient Greece arises out of the societyÕs conceived connection between women to children. The menÕs domination of women in Greece is also supported with the statement that eunuchs and prepubescent boys resemble women, which implies that women are like non-reproducing males before their transition into full, fertile adulthood. These Òmedical factsÓ provide the framework that allows the patriarchy to conclude that women are significantly inferior to men and therefore deserve less power. By infiltrating a discipline that has always been thought to explain the world from a logical and factual perspective, the medical texts show us the strength of the GreekÕs conviction in these ideas on the abilities and inabilities of men and women in generation, and the semblance between women and children, which explains the hierarchy of the Greek society.
Lloyd, G. E. R., ed. Hippocratic Writings. New York, N.Y.: Penguin Books, 1978.
Maureen B. Fant and Mary R. Lefkowitz. 1992. WomenÕs Life in Greece & Rome [online]. Baltimore: Diotoma. Available from the World Wide Web: (http://www.stoa.org/diotima/anthology/wlgr/wlgr-medicine.shtml)