Women’s Life in Greece and Rome

This book is a virtual encyclopedia of women in Greece and Rome written from their perspective and what was written about them. It also includes legal documents from the time which described marriage, dowries, and a variety of rules of conduct. It is thoroughly indexed with some notable omissions. Women of all social classes are represented. The problem with the book is that it is dense reading because of the font and page size. It does have some beautiful illustrations which are spaced throughout the book just right. This is the fourth edition of this book. I found the table of contents confusing and could not locate correct pages from it.

Women’s Life in Greece and Rome is a valuable reference and source book for any serious student of this period. In many ways it feels very modern, particularly a lengthy discourse in how to make women more like men. Scholars interested in the public and private lives of women will find this of interest since it follows women through marriage, childbirth, privileges and duties, and burial rites and epitaphs.