The Feminine Finery of Men: Some Representations of the Masculine and the Feminine in Ancient Greece
Gherchanoc, Florence
The Feminine Finery of Men: Some Representations of the Masculine and the Feminine in Ancient Greece - 2003.
76
The analysis of the feminine finery of men in the ancient Greek world allows us to think of sexual identity markers and to reflect on the needs fulfilled by, and the meaning of, the diverse forms of disguise in a society that stressed male values. Effeminacy and disguise work mostly on a visual register that reflects cultural norms. To a man, the feminine was other, as foreign as Dionysus in Thebes. Adopting clothes from the other sex therefore meant transgressing sexual identity and transforming social and political identity, which was considered potentially dangerous. However, teenagers’ disguise in an initiatic context was understood as revealing virility. Their feminine beauty (associated with Métis and seduction) was an element of their identity. However, adult disguise, although institutionalized, was criticized, especially when it involved politicians. The latter thus embody an effeminate, disguised, and marginal power which does not conform to the civic norms.
The Feminine Finery of Men: Some Representations of the Masculine and the Feminine in Ancient Greece - 2003.
76
The analysis of the feminine finery of men in the ancient Greek world allows us to think of sexual identity markers and to reflect on the needs fulfilled by, and the meaning of, the diverse forms of disguise in a society that stressed male values. Effeminacy and disguise work mostly on a visual register that reflects cultural norms. To a man, the feminine was other, as foreign as Dionysus in Thebes. Adopting clothes from the other sex therefore meant transgressing sexual identity and transforming social and political identity, which was considered potentially dangerous. However, teenagers’ disguise in an initiatic context was understood as revealing virility. Their feminine beauty (associated with Métis and seduction) was an element of their identity. However, adult disguise, although institutionalized, was criticized, especially when it involved politicians. The latter thus embody an effeminate, disguised, and marginal power which does not conform to the civic norms.
Réseaux sociaux