How was life different for women in the roman empire than in the early days of rome?

Answer 1

Roman women were under the authority of men. All household members were subject to patria potestas, the authority, of the pater familia (father of the family) the eldest male who was the head of the household (familia). The legal standing of daughters was pretty much the same as that of sons. Among the rights and duties of the pater familias was that of find a husband for his daughter. Marriages were arranged and occurred when the couple were considered to be old enough to consent (this was 14 for girl). However, the betrothal of girls often occurred well before this age.

In the period of the Early Republic, marriage cum manu (with hand) was the norm. A woman passed from the legal potestas of her father to that of her husband (who became her pater familias) her hand (or better, her person) was "handed over" to her husband. Her dowry, any inheritance rights were transferred to her husband. Any property she acquired after the marriage belonged to the husband.

The legal position of women with respect to their husbands improved over time. By the Mid Republic, marriage com manus waned and by the 2nd century BC "free" marriages had become predominant. Wives remained under the potestas of their families. Their legal status did not change and husbands had no legal authority over their wives. Brides still bought a dowry to their husbands, but if a husband divorced his wife (apart from cases of adultery) he had to return it to her family. The property of husband and wife were so thoroughly separated to the extent that gifts between spouses were not recognized as such and if the couple separated or divorced, they could be reclaimed. This change gave Roman women a greater degree of independence compared to that of women in other ancient societies and that of mediaeval women. Women remained under the potestas of their fathers, but this was only nominal. The fathers did not exercise control over their lives. Moreover, women now enjoyed inheritance rights.

Roman inheritance law required the estate of the father be divided equally among his children, regardless of their age and sex. Therefore, by the Mid Roman Republic women inherited a share equal with her brothers and though this they were independent form control by paternal (agnatic) relatives. Aristocratic women were engaged in the aristocratic practice of lending money to relatives and peers so that they would not have to rely on moneylenders. Borrowing from a woman was acceptable.

During the Second Punic War (218-201BC) many aristocratic women became richer. Many men died in the rat and wives and daughters inherited their lands and money. Many aristocratic women became rich. The Roman state decided to tap into women's wealth to help with funding the war. The Oppian Law limited the amount of gold women could own and required that all the funds of wards, single women, and widows be deposited with the state. Women also were forbidden to wear dresses with purple trim (the colour of mourning and a reminder of Rome's casualties) and to ride in carriages within or rear Rome. During the war rich Roman women complied with this. However, after the war they wanted to get rid of these restrictions and wanted to keep their inherited money. In 195 BC, when a proposal to repeal the Oppian Law was going to be repealed, women took to the streets in protest. It was the first female demonstration Rome saw and it was a large scale one. As a result, the veto was withdrawn and the repeal was passed. There were male writers who frowned on the opulence of Rich women and raised issues of morality. This clashed with their views of female propriety and with the aristocratic ideal which was popular at the time that the aristocracy should be frugal.

Roman women enjoyed great independence in business affairs. This was probably linked to the decay of marriages cum manus. They had the right to control their money and to own property. They could invest their money and lend and borrow money. There were women who owned and managed landed estates. In the Later Empire many of the rich sponsors of Christianity were rich Aristocratic women who owned large landed estates, sometimes even in different parts of the empire.

There were also wealthy female traders and manufacturers. During the Roman Republic the patrician aristocracy regarded itself as a class of landowners and shunned trading or manufacturing activities, which were not considered honourable for them. It was even thought that merchants and traders had to buy land to gain respectability. These attitudes changed in the Early Empire and there were patricians who engaged in these activities. The fourth Roman emperor, Claudius, even introduced a law designed to encourage patrician involvement in shipping. There are records of female owners of shipping firms and funerary inscription attested to women owning shops, brick factories, and workshops of various kinds.

During the period of rule by emperors inscriptions attested female participation in the funding of public works.

The situation of poor women was different. They and their families struggled to survive. Some of them were prostitutes, actresses and dancers. In Roman drama all actors were males, even for female roles. Actresses played in sordid plays. Prostitutes, pimps, actors, dancers and gladiators were infames. Infamia was a lowering of legal standing and public esteem (extimatio) which these jobs (or crimes involving public morality) incurred. Infames were could not give testimony in court of the ground of their lowered extimatio. They could not represent someone or be represented in court. They were liable to corporal punishment. This was usually used exclusively for slaves. Male infames were also excluded from running for public office.