Women in Rome Essay - 678 Words

Most women in ancient Rome were viewed as property of the men who they lived with. Basically they were handed from their father to their new husband at the time of their marriage and surrendered any property they owned, or dowry they were given, to their husband (Document 1). There were however two types of marriage in ancient Rome, manus and sine manus. Under the first type, manus, the woman and all of her property and possessions were placed under the control of her husband and he could do with them how he pleased. Under the second type, sine manus, the woman remained under the control of her oldest male relative, usually her father or brother. This type of marriage gave women a lot more freedom because they could carry out their own†¦show more content†¦nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;The virtues expected of Roman women were fidelity, chastity, modesty, and dedication to her home and family. The women ran the household, she was in charge of overseeing the domestic slaves, planni ng the meals, and the biggest duty set to her was raising her children (Text Book 152). nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;It seems that women in Greek and Roman society lead very similar lives. In both societies they were under the control of the males of the household. Wives were considered the property of their husbands, and their main roles were to take care of the household and raise children. Daughters of the household were seen as liabilities because they needed to be taken care of, and in many instances baby girls were abandoned or killed. In a letter to his wife one man wrote, â€Å"†¦Good luck to you, if you bear offspring, if it is a male, let it live; if it is female, expose it.† (Document 3). In both societies it was legal for aShow MoreRelatedWomen in Ancient Rome1214 Words   |  5 PagesRoman Women The Romans believed that women were the weaker sex. 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