​Women in Ancient Poetry

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     The Shijing and the Iliad contain numerous examples of women, which help us understand the roles women played in ancient society as well as ancient poetic devices. In the Iliad, women are portrayed as more of objects for the use of men, such as for war trophies, and are often compared to Goddesses. In the Shijing, women are described in terms of romance, marriage, and in simile to nature. In this paper I will examine, compare, and contrast the ancient women as portrayed in the Shijing compared to the women in the Iliad. C. H. Wang said concerning comparative literature, “What we can find in literature of several traditions are not parallels or influences, but a common sense, a shared aspiration defined before individual backgrounds, an encyclopedia of diversity catalogued, a poetry as a means of humanistic education,” (Wang xiii). Although these portrayals come from two different and very distant cultures, they can still tell us a great deal of information regarding ancient poetry devices, the commonalities between women in ancient society, and the human experience in general.

1. The Context in which Women are Portrayed

     In the Iliad, many women are mentioned in the context of war. Some women, like Briseis, are taken as war trophies, almost treated as if they were objects and not human beings. Helen seems to be the ultimate war trophy; the prince of Troy would stole her away and thus started a war. In the Iliad it says the soldiers of Greece were, “fighting the Trojans in a strange land for the accursed sake of Helen,” (Butler). From this passage, we can understand that an entire went to war over a woman, which tells us that women in Greek culture were the most precious possession of all. It seems that women in the Iliad were very much integral to war and the spoils of victory.
     In contrast, women in Shijing are spoken of during romance, marriage, or child bearing, but not as war trophies. They seem to be most often described in romance or leaving her parents’ home to be married. For instance, in one poem it says, “Let’s go look across the Wei,/It is truly a place for our pleasure./Man and maid together,/Each frolicked with the other,/And gave as gift the peony,” (Owen 48). In the poem above, we can see that in the Shijing, the relationships between men and women are happy and romantic, much more than we would see in the Iliad. The women in the Shijing seem to have power over whether the man can chase her; for instance there is often a river between them that the man must cross before he can win her love, perhaps representing winning her heart. Throughout the Shijing, women are often described in these love or marriage images, contrasting with the warring images of women in the Iliad.

1. Descriptions of Women

     In the Shijing, women are often described by metaphor or allegory. Many times this involves comparing the woman to an animal or a fruit. For instance in this poem it reads, “A roe deer dead in the meadow,/All wrapped in white rushes./The maid’s heart was filled with spring,/A gentleman led her astray,” (Owen 32). In this passage, a girl is compared to a dead deer, perhaps representing a girl defiled by a certain gentleman. There are also many instances in the Shijing of girls being compared to fish, birds, peaches, radishes, and so forth. The Shijing truly has countless metaphors comparing women to objects in nature, showing their beauty, cunning, or vulnerability.
     On the other hand, women in the Iliad are not described in great detail, and certainly not with simile or metaphor. Many times the women in the Iliad are just described as fair, or beautiful; take this passage for instance, “Achilles lay in an inner room of the house, with fair Briseis by his side,” (Butler). Here we see a lack of description of the girl besides her being fair; the author does not compare her to anything. One is left up to imagine just how beautiful she was. But the Iliad does put these women in context; an entire war is being fought over Helen, and Briseis is taken as the greatest prize of the war. In this context, we can know that these women must have been very beautiful, even if there is not a metaphor of their beauty in the text.
     In the Shijing there is also symbolism that represents the quality of a woman, as in the poem, “When eating fish, who needs/The bream of the river?/When taking a wife, who needs/A Jiang princess of Qi?” (Owen 53). Here we can see that women are compared to fish, and the women the poet mentions are described by the quality of fish, which is represented by the breed of fish mentioned; surely the bream of the river compared to a carp have a difference in value. The point the poet seems to be making in this particular poem is that the kind of woman that you choose doesn’t matter, as long as you have a woman, just as in fishing it doesn’t matter what you catch as long as you have something to eat.
     Contrastingly, in the Iliad there is less symbolism. The mortal women in the Iliad are often compared to goddesses; for instance Helen is compared to Venus in beauty. As goddesses, we assume that these women are perfect in their beauty, but that is all we know. We are left to ourselves to imagine what perfect beauty looks like. Perhaps the Greeks already had an idea of what the goddesses looked like, so this comparison may have been sufficient to the people listening to the poets at the time. Overall, it seems that the Iliad pales in comparison to the Shijing in terms of the descriptions of women.

1. Women as Representations of People or Ideas

      The women in the Shijing are also sometimes used to represent other people or ideas. A woman may even be a representation of the poet himself. This is apparent in this passage, “O the magpie has its nest,/But tis the dove that fills it,/The bride is going to her home,/A hundred coaches in her train,” (Owen 35). Here the magpie could represent a high ranking official, or the poet himself, that is being removed from his post in favor of someone else. The magpie and the dove could also represent the wife of the emperor, and the new bride a young concubine taking her place. Also, other poems involving the taking of a new bride could also be interpreted to mean that the poet is expressing his own jealousy of others being favored in the political hierarchy of the emperor’s courts. This kind of journey or progress has been described by C.H. Wang; he says: “There are two major patterns in allegorical literature, namely the battle and the progress,” (Wang 179). In terms of women, their progress in the Shijing most often deals with marriage or moving onto a new home with their husband where they can bear children. This progress of women may also represent the progress of the poet gaining favor in the eyes the lord for which he is employed.
     On the other hand, in the Iliad, the women represent more of ideas than personification of others. For instance, Helen, for whom an entire war was fought, could represent the abstract pride of the Greek nation. As C.H. Wang put it, “the allegorical hero is not so much a real person as he is a generator of other secondary personalities, which are partial aspects of himself,” (Wang 168). Perhaps many of the women in the Iliad do not represent real people, but rather ideas or aspects of themselves. For instance, to could be argued that Helen represents the pride of Greece, which can only be taken back by the utter annihilation of the entire city of Troy. However, it seems unlikely that these women represent the author himself, as women in the Iliad seem to fit only minor roles in the characters, and there are many other male characters that the poet could project himself onto; this is very different from the Shijing, in which women are often made as the main character if not the only character in the poem. Because the women in the Iliad only play minor roles throughout the epic, it seems unlikely that women would represent the author or another person, but rather represent secondary characteristics or personalities.
  

1. Women in Domestic Roles

     Women in the Shijing are often portrayed in domestic roles, an important way in which they benefit society. C. H. Wang explained this in regards to the poem in the Shijing called, “A Greater Brightness.” In this poem, the wife of King Wen was had just been married, Wang says of her, “the duty which [she] assumed in the [Zhou] was to bear a child,” (Wang 109). It seems that the crucial role for women in ancient China was to bear children, especially a son heir. But this is not the only societal role that ancient women in China performed. For example, in this poem it reads, “Peach tree soft and tender,/Its leaves spread thick and full,/The bride is going to her home,/She well befits these folk,” (Owen 34). Here we see that the bride is going to her new home fulfilling her role as a housewife. But not only this, she will greatly benefit the people there. Here we can see that the women of ancient China were not only valued for their family roles, but for their contribution to the larger society by getting along with and serving their neighbors in the village.
     Although many women in the Iliad are only portrayed as being sought after as prizes, there still are some examples of women in the Iliad fulfilling their domestic role and benefiting society. We see this with Hector’s wife especially, “She told her maids to set a large tripod on the fire, so as to have a warm bath ready for Hector when he came out of battle,” (Butler). Here Hector’s wife is shown as caring and dutiful wife, caring for her husband in times of trouble and not just acting as his inanimate war trophy. Ancient women in these societies were surely an integral part of ancient society, and contributed greatly to the well-being and long term stability of their respective nations and people.

1. The Value of Women

     Women in Iliad often seem to be pushed around as war prizes, and mere objects of desire rather than respectable human beings. Helen did not have a choice of who she could marry; she was constantly kidnapped by an opposing side. Also other women and wives of the soldiers also seemed to be nothing but war trophies to the men, such as Briseis. However, the wife of Hector is treated well by her husband, and mourns for his loss. In all of the Iliad, Hector treats his wife better than any other man; showing that being a respected woman in Greek culture is possible and praiseworthy of the ancient poets.
     In contrast, women in the Shijing are almost always portrayed as being courted and treated with respect by their suitors or husbands. Money and gifts for the bride’s family are also often mentioned, as a way to recompense the bride’s family for the loss of their daughter; for example, “If she would be my bride,/I’d offer for her a horse,/So wide, the Han,/I can’t wade over,” (Owen 31). Here we can see that the ancient Chinese men valued women and offered gifts, such as horses, to win over their hearts and pay respect to their family. This practice stands in great contrast to the men in the Iliad who used force and violence to take the daughters of their enemies as trophies.

1. The Social Status of Women

     Women in the Shijing seem to be more respected and have higher social status and importance than the women in the Iliad. In the Shijing, there are many images of women evading men, by use of natural means, such as a river. Also the woman sometimes has the social power to reject the man. But we also see women who are forced to perform their social roles, such as marrying and going to a new home, sometimes against her will. For instance, in the poem, “Huge Rat,” it says, “Huge rat, huge rat,/Eat my millet no more,/For three years I’ve fed you,/Yet you pay me no heed,” (Owen 52). Here the wife is compelled to stay at home and watch over the husband, no matter how fat and lazy the husband is, neglecting her and ignoring her. This could also be looked at in the opposite perspective; perhaps the husband has slaved for the wife, who seems to do nothing all day and not pay him any respect in return. In this case, women in the Shijing could have held superior social and political power over men.
     In the Iliad however, it seems that women are often repressed in their social roles, and have little power in the affairs of men. For instance, Achilles took Briseis as a war prize, even against her father’s wishes; she was essentially kidnapped from her home after the Greeks conquered her city. Helen is also in the same situation; she was stolen from the Greeks by prince Priam, and was left to await the outcome of the war to see who would be her final spouse. But there are examples of strong women in the Iliad, such as the Goddesses, especially the goddess Athena. Athena is almost man-like, as the god of war, able to change the outcome of the war in the Greeks favor and fight in battles in and help the mortals. She also stands up to Zeus and was a champion for the Greeks. However, the Goddess Helena resorts to sexual persuasion in order to get her way with Zeus, which seems to demean the role of women in Greek society.
     The Shijing also shows females personified as Goddesses, which shows their revered role in society. In the Poem, “She bore the folk,” (Owen 12), it shows that man was born from a Goddess named Jiang. David Hawkes explained the importance of female deities in ancient China, he said “female deities of rivers and mountains…according to ancient custom, were sacrificed to with offering dropped in the water,” (Hawkes 80). Here we can see that females in the form of deities were very much revered and were part of sacred rituals and religion of ancient China. Because of this, we know that across cultures important that women are very much respected, and can even be deified and worshipped.

1. Women and Romance

       Women in the Shijing and the Iliad are both talked about romantic contexts. However it seems that women in the Shijing are more often mentioned in romantic situations. Women are showed as longing for their men, as in this poem: “Along the bluffs of the Ru/ I hack the boughs and branches/ Until the time I see my Prince/ I crave him like dawn hunger,” (Owen 34). Here we see an image of a women hacking through branches amid bluffs, and craving for her prince. Perhaps the brambles represent other men or suitors that are chasing her while her love is gone. They could also represent her sadness having lost her most dear love. In the Shijing, we are also shown romance from a man’s perspective, as in this poem: “By passion his heart was swept away­­‑/ he would never forget in a thousand years./ Such dangerous beauty beguiled Xia-cai;/ fair features knotted his heart within,” (Owen 33). Here we see some great images of the romantic feelings that this man has for the woman that has beguiled him; his heart was knotted with her beauty, and his passion swept his senses away. The Shijing surely shows powerful romantic images of men and women and is very poignant in describing their romantic feelings for one another.
     The Iliad is also filled with examples of romance and love between women and men.
One of the most intimate images of romance comes from romance between the Gods. An example of this comes from Zeus and Hera, when Zeus says, “let us devote ourselves to love and to the enjoyment of one another. Never yet have I been so overpowered by passion neither for goddess nor mortal woman as I am at this moment for yourself,” this passionate passage from the Iliad shows that ultimate passion was revered by the Greeks and was also enjoyed by the Gods themselves. We can see from the Iliad that love and passion was an integral part of Greek life, and were expressed beautifully and openly.
     However, many of the romantic images in the Iliad seem to somewhat demean women as more objects and trophies of war. For instance, in this passage it says, “let him come when we Achaeans are dividing the spoil, and load his ship with gold and bronze to his liking; furthermore let him take twenty Trojan women, the loveliest after Helen herself,” (Butler). It seems that after the victory over the Trojans, many of the Greeks only took women as trophies, the spoils of war. This is not to say that the same mentality didn’t exist in the Shijing. For instance in the poem, “Dead Roe Deer,” the author clearly portrays the rape of a young woman, the consequences of an overly lustful man who took this woman as an object of desire, the poem reads, “Softly now, and  gently, gently,/ do not touch my apron, sir,/ and don’t set the cur to barking,” (Owen 36). Here we can see that in the Shijing there are examples of men taking women as objects for pleasure, instead of following traditional Chinese customs of respect and family values. It seems that in both of these ancient cultures, human nature and lust became the bane of many women, as they were treated as objects and trophies by the men of their time.

1. Women and Nature

      In both the Shijing and the Iliad, women are often connected with nature elements and images. Women in the Shijing are often compared to animals in nature such as birds, or to plants such as a peach tree. For instance, in this poem it says, “Watercress grows here and there,/ right and left we pull it./ Gentle maiden, pure and fair,/ with harps we bring her company,” (Owen 31). In this poem, we see an image of watercress next to a stream, be grafted up and taken away. The next line compares this image with that of a young maiden being taken away from her home by a company with music. The woman is taken from her home just as watercress is pulled from the side of a river. We know that the plant in this poem means more than just a nice image. As C.H. Wang said, “Vegetation can be simple ornaments in Chinese poetry, for visual delight for example, and yet very often they are more than just ornaments,” (Wang 176). We can see from the juxtaposition of the images of a plant and the gentle maiden that the watercress is more than just a simple ornament, but carries a much deeper meaning.
     The Iliad also has many instances of women being compared to nature, especially forces of nature. This happens most often when the goddesses are described. For example, in this passage, regarding the goddess Athena, it says, “She hid them in a thick cloud, and Simois made ambrosia spring up for them to eat; the two goddesses then went on, flying like turtledoves in their eagerness to help the Argives,” (Butler). In this passage we see multiple examples of nature imagery. The first is that of the heroes being hid in a dark cloud. This act of nature, a mist coming from nowhere to conceal them, is described as an act of the goddesses. The use of a turtledove to describe the goddesses should also be noted; the turtledove represents love and peace, showing that the goddesses bring good tidings and help to the Greeks. It should be noted that the turtledove was also used in Chinese poetry. According to C.H. Wang, “[an ancient] Chinese poet had determined on the turtledove to intensify and embellish [his] nuptial poem,” (Wang 162). We can see that although China and Greece were on almost opposite ends of the globe, they both used the image of a turtledove in their poetry. This shows that the turtledove is a basic human symbol of love and peace across cultures, especially in regards to women.

1. Women in Mothering Roles

      One of the greatest contributions of ancient women was the mothering of children, bringing up future generations of humankind. This was shown as a crucial role of women in Chinese poetry, especially in the Shijing. For instance, in this Shijing poem it says, “And Great Ren became with child/ and gave birth to our King Wen./ This King Wen of ours,/ his prudent heart was well ordered,” (Owen 19). From this poem we can see that the Great Ren’s greatest achievement was the birth of her son, King Wen. From this passage it is clear to see that poets in ancient China greatly revered women as the mothers of great leaders, a crucial role in society. This poem also talks about the next generation, when King Wen decides to take a bride. C.H. Wang says concerning his new bride, “The virtuous power of the lady was to bear a child,” (Wang 109).  King Wen’s bride also bore a great leader, King Wu. It is apparent that if a great leader appeared in China, much respect was given to their mother for raising such a wise, virtuous, and powerful future leader.
     The Iliad also has many examples of women in their nurturing roles as mothers. However, these mothers are shown most often in aid of their sons in battle. For instance, in this passage it says, “Lastly, when the famed lame god had made all the armour, he took it and set it before the mother of Achilles; whereon she darted like a falcon from the snowy summits of Olympus and bore away the gleaming armour from the house of Vulcan,” (Butler). From this passage we can see that Achilles’ mother Thetis cared for her son, long after he was grown, and continued to aid him in his destiny. In the Iliad it is very clear that the great men in the Iliad revered their mothers and relied on them for strength even after they were grown. They were truly an irreplaceable part of ancient Greek society.

1. Women and Marriage

     Another key aspect of women in the Shijing and the Iliad was their marriage to men, a life changing event that changed their social role in society. Marriage was certainly an important theme and image in many poems in the Shijing. For example, in this poem it says, “From Zhi the second daughter, Ren,/ went from the land of Yin and Shang./ She came to marry into Zhou,/ in its great city, foreign bride,” (Owen 19). From this poem we can see that Ren, a woman with already very high social status, was still chosen to be sent to a faraway land to become another man’s bride. This was the most important thing she did in her life, perhaps besides bear the king an heir. In this same poem, King Wen marries his bride; of this wedding C.H. Wang explains, “The wedding of King Wen is the most magnificent and auspicious rite celebrated in Chinese Poetry,” (Wang 127). This is a bold statement made by C.H. Wang, but also a true one; this wedding was perhaps the most important event for the most important man in the Shijing. Thus it receives special mention. Marriage in ancient Chinese poetry seems to be one of the most important ceremonies and life accomplishments of both men and women.
     In the Iliad, marriage is also shown as a crucial part of life for women. Although often in the Iliad women are treated as objects and war trophies, they are very much valued as wives, and it seems that their husbands do truly love them. For instance Achilles, who plainly took his wife as a war prize, describes his wife Briseis thus, “Are the sons of Atreus the only men in the world who love their wives? Any man of common right feeling will love and cherish her who is his own, as I this woman, with my whole heart,” (Butler). Even though Briseis was taken from him, Achilles still mourned for her and longed for her, his beloved bride. Although it seems that the marriage ceremony in Greek culture was somewhat underplayed, the marriage relationship between man and wife seems to be the strongest form of love that is described. The institution of marriage seems to be the most important and critical organization in ancient Greek culture.
 
Conclusion
      There are many similarities and differences between the women that appear in Iliad and in the Shijing. The descriptions of women in the Shijing seem to use more metaphor and allegory, while women in the Iliad use very little description and metaphor to describe the women. Also in the Shijing, women seem to be personified by animals or objects in nature, while this is not the case in the Iliad, although women in the Iliad could have represented abstract ideas. Women in the Shijing are shown in their domestic roles and their contributions to society, but there seems to be little examples of these kinds of women in the Iliad, with the best example being Hector’s wife. The women in the Iliad seem to be overall more repressed than the women portrayed in the Shijing, while the Shijing women seem to have more freedom and respect given to them by men. However, the Iliad also shows women respected and portrayed as deities, a phenomenon which also appears in the Shijing. Surely there are many more aspects of this topic that can be studied; future analysis of the women in the Shijing and the Iliad will only further increase our understanding and appreciation of ancient women and their contributions to society.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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Hawkes, David. "The Quest of the Goddess." Studies in Chinese Literary Genres. Berkeley: U of California, 1974. Print.
Owen, Stephen. An Anthology of Chinese Literature: Beginnings to 1911. New York: W.W. Norton, 1996. 10-77. Print.
Wang, C. H. From Ritual to Allegory. Hong Kong: Chinese UP, 1986. Print.