Inside old Greece it had been considered that a wandering and discontented Womb try blamed for that dreaded girls grievance of excessively feelings, hysteria. The brand new disease’s attacks was basically thought to be influenced by in which into the the human body the offensive organ roamed. It wasn’t religious belief but a social belief.
Brand new ancient greek language physician Hippocrates are one of the primary so you can select this disorder. The guy noticed hysteria was prominent in females and think it actually was caused by a good displaced or “wandering womb”. Because there are almost no understanding of women’s biology the expression “Hysteria” was utilized to describe all bodily and you may emotional women problems.
The individuals out of Greece thought that the latest womb ‘s the source regarding disorder of females
In my opinion, it is important to make a connection between the ideas about women’s biology and their social status during this time period. This correlation is important because for Aristotle, women were not factored into his philosophical teachings because of their “bad biology”. In his book Nicomachean Ethics, he regards women to be unfit to participate in political justice because during their menstruation they experience many hormonal and emotional changes. According to Aristotle these changes directly effect their character, and thus they should not be able to participate in the polis since they are unable to hold their character, or keep it under control (as my philosophy teacher so nicely put it.) Aristotle uses this theory of “hysteria” for proof as to why women shouldn’t be educated or allowed to partake in politics.
Even yet in history textbooks, i discover almost no regarding the female. It actually was the fresh boys exactly who held governmental offices, turned into priests and you may bishops, defeated residential property and you will turned into knights. “Zero Greek Condition ever enfranchised people. Within the Athens, they may perhaps not attend otherwise choose at the group meetings of your set up, take a seat on juries, or act as council members, magistrates, otherwise generals.” ( Blundell, 128) Often, you to definitely will find that women was indeed “seen as a special circumstances, a departure regarding the masculine standard scandinavian dating service. This would serve to forewarn us that there’s a feature about scientific treatises and therefore runs restrict into the writer’s emphasis towards empirically received education, and you may and this comes away from an ideological view of the newest physical character of women.” From the conversation off gynecology particularly, ideas in the ladies’ physiology receive to echo and you can bolster records about their societal and you can moral label.
There was you to definitely Greek misconception you to definitely greatly affects so it belief and you can this new portrayal of women inside the Old Greece. One myth is focused on the first woman Pandora. Pandora represented in order to men mankind while the stunning, marriageable (Parthenos), threatens the work of the specialist given that her outside is actually inaccurate, covering up the reality that their looks include an excellent voracious uterus- Jar plus the attention regarding a good bitch” (King, 40). Pandora’s unsafe insides try her uterus. We are able to relate this passing in order to website found in Hippocratic corpus Hysteria try title made available to many people ailments. The new Greeks and you will Romans named almost all girls problems hysteria, and you will noticed the explanation for most of these people diseases as a roaming womb.
Scientific writers, such as those in the Hippocratic corpus Really people concur that this new uterus was a body organ liable to relocate items from monthly period inhibition, exhaustion, not enough restaurants, sexual abstinence, and you can excessive dry skin otherwise lightness of your own organ itself
In different Hippocratic messages the definition of hysteria try placed on a good high kind of females problems. Greco-Roman medical writers thought that hysteria are a disease considering unlawful movements of womb and this are hence strange so you’re able to female. After the was actual site on what occurs when brand new womb wanders and effect it’s abreast of a lady. Since womb tried to force its ways toward the newest packed towns and cities during the center of an effective female’s trunk, it wreaked chaos together with her mental and physical wellness, ultimately causing their in order to weak or feel speechless.