Honey-smiling Sappho: a word on women in Greece.

I've been thinking a lot about the perception of women, mostly in a modern context. But, once again, I realize that whatever modern thing I'm thinking about inevitably has deep seated roots. Doing research on Sappho this week, I was pretty dismayed by the scholarship and disappointed in the oblique sexism both from her contemporaries and modern commentators. 

Sappho, the most famous Greek poetess (which is not to say she was the only one), lived on the island of Lesbos from around 630 BCE to her death in 570 BCE, with a brief time of exile during a tumultuous political climate. Very little of her poetry survives, but that which does is incredibly beautiful. The Alexandrians considered her one of the nine great lyric poets; unsurprisingly, she is the only woman on the list. However, she is most famous for her sexual preferences, which have been sensationalized. Perhaps this is due to the dearth of her original text that survives, but I think there's more to it than that. 

Sappho was apparently ugly according to Greek standards. As far as I can tell, 'ugly' means 'dark'. Another more complimentary contemporary called her "violet-haired", so we can assume she is at minimum not golden-haired or pale-skinned. She was also small, another apparent strike against her. But an epithet that was attributed to her by the same friend who called her "violet-haired" was mellichomeide - "honey-smiling".

I think this is a beautiful word and a beautiful concept, but there is also an undertone of male condescension that makes me deeply sad. Men are allowed to be diverse in their descriptors: strong, brilliant, kind, wise, a great poet. But Sappho? Well, she isn't pretty, but at least she's sweet. Beauty and kindness, while good enough things, should not be what Sappho is reduced to because she's a woman. Back to modern times, girls and women are frequently told that "they're prettier when they smile". That's not cool. You don't have the right to try and dictate my happiness or my emotions, or try to make me fake a smile because it makes me more visually appealing. I have thoughts, and sometimes these thoughts do not make me smile, and forcing me or anyone else to create some facsimile of happiness is not your right.

Honey-smiling Sappho may have been sweet, but that is not all she was. Sappho was a powerful writer who captured love, companionship, and life, regardless of who she slept with. And so, I end with this. 

Sappho,  fragment 58 (trans Mary Barnard)

Pain penetrates
me drop
by drop

A lot has been done physically on the website this week, which is exciting. Accepting the caveat that it most places on the site are inaccessible to viewers at this time, here is the link. Please please PLEASE let me know if there's something that jumps out at you as a. wrong, or b. unergonomic. We really want this to be sleek and easy to use.

http://www.antiquityinireland.org 

Thank you in advance for any advice!