Love and Sexuality in Ancient Greece

“In the crooks of your body, I find my religon.”

12 Dec, 20244 min read

Ancient Greece has left many legacies for our modern world. It has shaped the Western World as we know it today and still has major influences over politics, the arts, society, and many other aspects of our everyday lives. When we think of Ancient Greece’s huge influence, it wouldn’t be totally wrong to examine how love and sexuality have been expressed in its culture, politics, myths, art, and everyday life. This article serves only as a brief introduction and overview of the concept. The themes of love and sexuality have a major part in the ancient Greek society with many different types; for this reason, to completely grasp the concept, heavy research is required.

Love and sexuality, like many aspects of the ancient Greek civilization, depended heavily on gender and the hierarchical structure of society. The most obvious example of this would be the stature of heterosexuality, the relationship between a man and a woman. Heterosexuality was one of the foundations of the Ancient Greek society, as it formed the domestic sphere, or the household. It was a hierarchy within the already existing one and served as a transition between the two. Ancient Greek women didn’t have as many rights or say in many topics as their contemporary successors. The female figure heavily relied on male figures, such as a husband or a father, to not contribute to the polis (city-state), but rather to simply survive. In this sense, women’s place was not very different from that of the slaves. It can be said that free women led better lives than enslaved women or foreign women. However, the Greek women’s sphere of influence was mainly in the household and didn’t extend beyond it that much. This was evident in the raising of girls, as their childhood was rather a preparation for their duties as wives in marriage and adulthood. So marriage was a power dynamic or a cycle that repeated within itself.

In terms of homosexuality, Ancient Greece had a practice that was deeply embedded within its culture. This was known as pederasty. The practice was among elderly men and young boys before they came of age. Although in today’s perception this may seem unacceptable and even disgusting, in ancient Greek society this practice served a purpose and was acceptable in certain terms. The aim of this practice was to teach the young boy the ways of life and love of the elderly partner. This would continue until the boy entered puberty. Any relation between the two parts after that point was seen as abnormal. However, other homosexual relationships had more recognition compared to that of lesbianism, since men were the main subjects of the Greek civilization.

Today, we owe the word ‘lesbian’ to the famous poet Sappho from the island of Lesbos. Not only was she famous with her poems, but also with her love life that was exclusive to women. The word'sapphic’ also has its roots within the ancient poet. Her love life became so renowned that the term ‘lesbian’ was used to refer to women who engaged in sexual or emotional affairs with other women rather than those who were from the island of Lesbos. However, despite having such a reputation, lesbian relationships were mostly frowned upon since women weren't that prominent in the power dynamics of society. They were perceived within the traditional gender roles and archetypes as the virgin, the mother, or the whore of Babylon.

Outside of these relationships, love and sexuality also had a purpose that honored the divine. There were many deities of love and lust, and this has also reflected on their worships and beliefs in many different forms. Some of these gods would be: Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty. Eros, the god of love and lust, is the protector of relationships. Dionysus, whose worship included a state of ecstasy that resulted in sexual activities such as orgies that ultimately ended in pleasure. Hera, who was the goddess of marriage, and many more other deities. The concept of love and sexuality even applied to the divine, as their myths also heavily relied on the concept. The myths would tell the love between the gods themselves, and sometimes their relationships between humans as well.