The Athenian Widow and her Kin

Evidence in Attic lawsuits, viewed in a cross-cultural perspective, reveals that the legal restrictions on women made it difficult for widows to achieve the kind of independence and power enjoyed by their counterparts in early modern Europe. Athenian widowsfunctioned mainly within the structure of the family. Peculiar to their position was the fact that they remained members of their natal family. Hence, though legally without rights of inheritance, widows were assured of the protection of a father or a brother and of a place in their family of origin. Sons carried on in the tradition of natal kin in supporting and protecting widowed mothers. The latter, mature widows, often exercised power within the family, where they were respected as figures of authority.

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