Daily Life in Periclean Athens essay

The time of Periclean Athens showed the simplicity of a democratic life. Their life was simple and yet satisfying. The citizens of Athens were happy with their way of life. The basic Athenian house was unpretentious. Their house depicted equality among the citizens that citizens should be treated uniformly. Home cooking was done in the hearth of the home. It provided welcome to the family and heat in the winter. Greeks did not desire for much meat. They only eat meat during special occasions. Because of this, finding a meal for their everyday lives was not difficult. Gender and Sexuality

The social status of Athenian woman was debatable. Women are often fragmentized because of their physical traits. In history accounts, there were little details with women because during vital events, women played a minimal role, mostly there are in their homes. The idea of Athenian philosophy is that women and men should be segregated. But it was not totally implemented in historical accounts. Athenian law protected the rights of women. The women during those times were allowed to be the head of the households and balance the earnings of her husbands. The law also prosecuted women offenders.

Women had a primary role to bear the children of Athens and were properly shielded by the law. Plato, a famous philosopher during the classical era, believed that women and children should be protected. He believed in the power of the women to reproduce offspring. Greek Religion The religion of Greeks is quite difficult to understand. The Greeks did not have a uniform religion. But most of them worship the same God such as Zeus, Apollo and Poseidon. The Greeks has no guideline for worshipping certain Gods. Ritual and not belief was more important in worshipping the Gods.

The role of the priests was to protect the property of the temple and perform rituals but not create religious doctrines. The altar of the temples was important because it is where they present their offerings to gain the favor of the Gods. Aside from common Gods that they worshipped that lived on Mount Olympus, they also worshipped heroes, which were born the union between a God and mortal. Hercules was an example of these heroes. Each polis worshipped their deity. They hold festivities and cults for the participation of the townspeople. The citizens participated in the cults for a way to demonstrate their honor for Greece.