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The Daily Insight

Does Lysistrata have a husband

Author

Robert Spencer

Published Mar 08, 2026

Lysistrata’s marital status is not defined in the play.

Who is Myrrhine's husband in Lysistrata?

A man suddenly appears, desperate for sex. It is Kinesias, the husband of Myrrhine. Lysistrata instructs her to torture him. Myrrhine informs Kinesias that she will have sex with him but only if he promises to end the war.

What happens at the end of Lysistrata?

Lysistrata comes out of the Akropolis with her naked handmaid, Peace. … After both sides agree, Lysistrata gives the women back to the men and a great celebration ensues. The play ends with a song sung in unison by the Chorus of Old Men and the Chorus of Old Women while everyone dances.

Is Lysistrata a man?

Lysistrata is an Athenian woman who is sick and tired of war and the treatment of women in Athens.

How old is Lysistrata?

“Lysistrata” was first staged in 411 BCE, just two years after Athens’ catastrophic defeat in the Sicilian Expedition, a turning-point in the long-running Peloponnesian War aginst Sparta, and, after 21 years of war, there seemed as little prospect of peace as ever.

Where is Myrrhine from?

Myrrhine first makes her appearance on the scene near the beginning of the play, when she comes to Lysistrata’s meeting of the women of Greece. Myrrhine is a local gal—a young housewife from Athens.

What is Myrrhine to Kinesias?

Myrrhine acts as the female seductress in this scene and positions herself as an idealized female or subject to male attraction. Myrrhine plays at the woman her husband desires. The comedy lies in Myrrhine’s exploitation of Kinesias’s ideal female and the audience’s knowledge that Kinesias will not get what he wants.

Who is the hero in Lysistrata?

All of this served as ammunition for Aristophanes‘ play. In Lysistrata, the women of both Athens and Sparta go on strike to force the men to stop the war and make peace. Through the outspoken hero of the play, Lysistrata, Aristophanes is provided an avenue for his anti-war views.

How are men portrayed in Lysistrata?

One of the most striking features about Lysistrata is the fact that the male characters are—almost without exception—portrayed as bumbling, incompetent fools, in contrast to the play’s powerful women. … In this way, the women knock the men down a few pegs, and clear some space for their own voices to be heard.

Who is the antagonist in Lysistrata?

The Chorus of Old Men and the Magistrate serve as the antagonists in Aristophanes, Lysistrata.

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What happens after there is a truce in Lysistrata?

Using Peace as a map of Greece, the Spartan and Athenian leaders decide land rights that will end the war. After both sides agree, Lysistrata gives the women back to the men and a great celebration ensues.

Who is drunk at the end of Lysistrata?

Time has apparently passed and the banquet between the Spartan and Athenian delegations has just finished. The Commissioner tells the chorus to get back from the doors. Kinesias, also drunk, comes out of the Akropolis and raves at the wonderful party between the Spartans and the Athenians.

WHO agrees to Lysistrata's plan first?

She says that, if the women want to bring an end to the war, they will all have to give up sex. This time around, the reaction is negative: the women think Lysistrata has gone too far, and they start walking away. But, just then, Lysistrata gets Lampito, the Spartan woman, to agree to her plan.

Is Lysistrata a feminist?

Lysistrata was a female turned masculine to keep the other women, controlled by their insatiable vices, in order. While some of her passages may seem uniquely feminist, that does not constitute her as a feminist figure. In fact, the play is rampantly anti-feminist when its context is understood.

What was the name of the first citizen of Athens who led them into the Peloponnesian War in 431 BCE?

The so-called golden age of Athenian culture flourished under the leadership of Pericles (495-429 B.C.), a brilliant general, orator, patron of the arts and politician—”the first citizen” of democratic Athens, according to the historian Thucydides.

Who is Calonice in Lysistrata?

Calonice is Lysistrata’s neighbor, and just like Lysistrata, Calonice is respectable middle-class housewife. Think of her as the Ethel Mertz to Lysistrata’s Lucy Ricardo.

Who is reconciliation in Lysistrata?

Lysistrata arrives to help broker the peace, and calls on a friend for help: the goddess of Reconciliation, who takes the form of a naked girl. Lysistrata lectures the two sides on the foolishness of warring against each other; they agree with her—mainly because they both lust after Reconciliation.

Which of the following is among Lysistrata's suggestions in the wool metaphor?

Lysistrata tells her captive audience member how Greece should be taken care of and repaired. The extended wool metaphor she employs describes Athens as a whole city, as a body of citizens. Lysistrata believes that the whole city must be cleaned and the burs, or bad men, and corruption should be removed.

What kind of leader is Lysistrata?

In conclusion Aristophanes has shown Lysistrata’s good leadership qualities such as organisation, manipulation and persuasion, her own passionate way of speaking and her ability to incite passion in others in a well rounded manner that makes her both identifiable to the other women and stand out as an independent,

What makes Lysistrata unique?

Lysistrata also uses different language than the other women; she is smarter, has more wit and has a more serious tone than the others. This too contributes to her ability as a leader of Greece. By the end of the play, the men call upon Lysistrata to make the treaty between Sparta and Athens.

What does weaving symbolize in Lysistrata's conversation with the magistrate?

Using “sewing” or “spinning” or “weaving” as a metaphor for “togetherness” has a long and illustrious history. Shucks, even today we talk about “a tightly knit family” or “patching up a relationship” or “a well-woven story.” When we want to talk about cohesiveness, we reach for the needle and thread.

How does Clytemnestra act like a man?

Nearly every male character in the play criticizes Clytemnestra for exhibiting qualities associated with men, and in the end, these very qualities—decisiveness, aggression, and sense of justice—are in fact what allow her to carry out her revenge plot.

Why is Lysistrata still relevant today?

“Lysistrata” was written in the fifth century B.C., but Carlblom believes it is still relevant: “It’s actually uncanny how many similarities there are between the world of the play and our situation. War is war is war is war. “In Aristophanes’s time, the war had been going on for over 20 years,” he said.

What is the most important theme or message of Lysistrata?

The main theme of Lysistrata is peace and unity. This is the main theme because the goal of the women is to create peace and to restore unity in Greece. Writing Lysistrata was Aristophanes’s way of commenting on the Peloponnesian War and its affects on society.

Is Lysistrata a heroine?

Lysistrata, an Athenian woman is the play’s heroine; her name is significant in itself, as it means “she who disbands the armies” (Page 467, footnote 2).

Why was Lysistrata banned?

Lysistrata. One of the oldest documented cases of censorship of the theater is the ban of Aristophanes’s “Lysistrata,” written in 411 BC, which was deemed “unacceptably subversive” by Greek authorities at the time, reports LA Weekly.

What does Lysistrata do to stop the fighting between Athens and Sparta?

Aristophanes’ Lysistrata persuades a group of her women friends to seize control of the Acropolis where the money used to fund the war between Athens and Sparta is stored and demand that their husbands sue for peace. When their husbands refuse to do so the women go on strike with comic and eventually peaceful results.

Why is Lysistrata the protagonist?

Lysistrata definitely stands out as the protagonist of this play. Before the action even starts, she’s got her whole plan worked out; as a result, she’s basically the one who gets the action going. And she not only gets it going, but she keeps it going.

What is the climax in Lysistrata?

The climax of Lysistrata happens when the Spartan herald approaches the Acropolis in a state of advanced tumescence pleading for a treaty to conclude the war between Sparta and Athens. … The falling action consists of Lysistrata brokering a peace treaty between the warring factions.

What style is Lysistrata?

Drama, Comedy That’s because Lysistrata is a play. It’s meant to be performed—although, given the kind of stuff that happens in Lysistrata, it’s unlikely that any principal would allow Lysistrata to be performed in drama class.

Did Lysistrata win any awards?

There is no record that Aristophanes received any awards for Lysistrata, but the play’s popularity in modern productions points to its probable success on stage. In 1930, Lysistrata enjoyed a successful revival in New York City, which lasted for several months.