— Anonymous
The text, Lysistrata, is an anti-war comedy that talks about a woman’s attempt to end the long Peloponnesian war. Lysistrata is a strong Athenian woman whose efforts were brightly shined to the audience as a testimony of a women’s strength even during dire times. In the play, Lysistrata takes it upon herself to come up with a way to end the injustice and lack of power women have in regards to their contribution to war affairs, or even any matter. During this time, we bare notice to a women’s lack of power to contribute to any political affairs; they are basically deemed as non-citizens and properties of their men. It has been thousands of years since 411 BCE and even today, I can still see a comparison to how women are treated. There are some parts of the world today where the women are treated even worse than in the play. Women in modern times, especially my country Bangladesh, would also have to take creative leaps of efforts to get the attention of their spouse. In the play, the women withheld their sexual privileges with their husbands until they bring an end to the war. Because of the play’s comedic nature, it turned out to be an overall success but in reality, it would turn out horribly and cause more turmoil for the women. The message of the play was to convey a women’s ability to turn their weaknesses into a strength. We see sex as one of their few roles, and thus we assume that they can not do much in order to catch their men’s attention. However, we see how the lack of it gives them the strength they need to not only get their husband’s attention, but ultimately end the war. In today’s time, women follow a practice similar to this that helps them show signs of power to men in regions where their power is not as prominent. For example, if a woman wanted to show her ability to contribute to politics or technology, they would have to gain the attention of men who initially would assume they lacked any talent. I have seen cases in India and parts of Asia where would women would cut off their source of contribution to men to not only remind them how truly valuable they are to society but how strong they are. However, despite similar courses of action, in today’s times, this action could lead to much more violence. I believe Lysistrata was a strong reminder to the audience of a woman’s strong-mindedness.
