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To The Hon Mrs Roubina Jadoo-Jaunbocus

5 mars 2018, 12:04

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Yet another UN International Day’s about to strike and you’ll have to talk at length about improving the lot of women, especially as tragedy’s struck your star visitor. “The best laid schemes o’ Mice an’ Men gang aft agley, an’ lea’e us nought but grief an’ pain for promis’d joy!" There’s a separate day for rural women too, but nothing for men. The UN also celebrates some languages but no mention is made of Greek, Classical or otherwise. It all seems rather discriminatory. On the other hand, from a strictly unbiased perspective, World Press Freedom Day is of great importance – but few governments seem to celebrate it.

In Ancient Greece, a woman’s role was to stay at home, breed and run the household. Whatever people’s views on patriarchal societies, that’s the way communities have been organised since time immemorial, apart from a few glitches like the Amazons. Legend reinforced male dominance – and fear of women. The stories around the Scythian women terrified the Ancient Greeks as much as did Pandora, a symbol of punishment for men’s wrongdoings. She appeared beautiful but, when she opened her jar, chaos and disaster flew out. The male psyche was also dominated by Xenophon’s philosophical discussion with Ischomachus, who spoke of teaching his wife to become the perfect servant, so that “she might become the sort of woman that she ought to be”, the opposite of Pandora.

If that wasn’t enough, there was Aphrodite, almost an archetypal liberated female, who let nothing get in her way. She was an independent and sensual goddess, inclined to promiscuity, particularly with mortals. Whether she’s seen as an emblem of strong womanhood or a dire warning of what women are capable, Greeks saw her as able to make men lose their minds, rather as rapists blame sexy-looking women for leading them astray. Like the Scottish poet, it’s worth keeping a close eye on rodents rooting around for bouts.  

However, as they strive for parity, strident voices seem to forget that men and women are actually different. Imagine if some technological advance makes it possible for men to bear children. They might need to grab an egg along the way but otherwise could find women no longer indispensable, especially if they provide no essential home comforts. If the situation wasn’t complicated enough, it’s more of a puzzle in a land where many men spend as much time every day visiting their mothers as they do with their wives – except at mealtimes. Oedipus may have a hand in that.

It may be better to concentrate on eliminating anomalies. Only a caveman can still object to equal pay for similar work and only a troglodyte imagines that women can still be dragged home by the hair or beaten in an alcoholic rage. But in present as in ancient times, people blindly assume that what they hold true today is true for all time. The fact is nobody knows whether the changes in roles will lead to a breakdown of society or a brave new world. As they are different physically and emotionally, it shouldn’t be surprising men and women often have different roles. Accepting that might convert more men to the valid cause of a more equitable social order. More thoughtfulness might help as well. 

By the way, I can’t decide whether to wear black on Thursday. What will you be wearing?  Afterwards, hopefully you’ll be relaxing with the sisterhood over some biriyani and perhaps a little nectar. We don’t want any old ladies girding up their loins and dashing out to smash glass ceilings. It’s a role better left to macho males more adept at damaging property by band.  

Yours sincerely    
Epi Phron