Pythagorean Women: Their History and Writings

Abstract

Pythagorean Women: Their History and Writings Sarah B. Pomeroy (Hunter College & The Graduate School, CUNY) Baltimore, MD: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2013, 172 pp. ISBN: 978-1-4214-0956-6Pomeroy focuses on the social history of women who were Pythagoreans. Pythagoras was the first philosopher to include women in his community. Women are equal to men, are given the same education, follow the same rules of conduct, and deserve the same respect. Pythagoras required men to stop consorting with women to whom they were not married. Pythagoras's female disciples should eschew precious jewelry and cosmetics. Pythagoras did not approve of any infidelity. Harmonia is a fundamental Pythagorean concept and has normative force, applying to the entire cosmos and everything in it (a cosmos is an ordered world system). Pythagoras emphasizes the importance of cosmic order and its normative implications for a disciplined way of life. All nature is akin, even though there are differences within nature. There is a cosmos, an orderly world system, and mathematical analysis can help us to understand this order. The Pythagorean doctrine of reincarnation allows for long-term rectification of injustice in ways that are not open to different worldviews.Pythagoras insists on simplicity of dress and manner for early Pythagorean women. The Neopythagorean women were willing to perpetuate Pythagoras's strictures on female dress. The lifestyle advocated by Pythagoras was favorable to women, but women were less likely to be noticed by historians. Pythagoras's program for men could not be successful without women's participation. Pythagoreanism offered an attractive way of life for women. Wives were obliged to make the majority of the accommodations necessary for a harmonious marriage. The Pythagorean women had to learn the unique rules governing the domestic life of Pythagoreans. Women had no say in framing the sumptuary prescriptions in Athens or in Magna Graecia. The laws of Solon curtailed women's influence and restricted their opportunities to meet with other female members of the family. By their lack of adornment and simple attire, Pythagorean women would stand out from the crowd. Women are most suited for piety. Pythagoras proposes a single standard for the sexual behavior of husband and wife, advocating strict monogamy for both. Pythagoras approves of orderly marital sexual relations, recommending that sexual intercourse take place only in the winter. Conjugal relationships should be temperate for the good of the married couple and for the benefit of the baby who might be conceived. The relationship a man enjoyed with his wife, children, siblings, and relatives should be characterized by friendship. Mothers as well as fathers deserve honor (among the gods there are both mothers and fathers). Parents of both sexes compete for the love of their children. The Neopythagoreans approve of many aspects of the Spartan system of education.Pomeroy pursues the aspects of Pythagorean philosophy that can be related to the letters and treatises that apply a Pythagorean principle of harmonia to the social conditions of women's lives. The treatises and letters of advice by Neopythagorean women are comparable to canonical works of Greek philosophy, focusing on practicability and the importance of flexibility in the application of principle to practice, and developing the philosophy with new theory, especially with respect to methodology. Neopythagorean women were innovative with respect to Pythagorean philosophy but remained true to its basic tenets, insisting on the role of moral character and practical consideration of how character is to be developed. Moral excellence concerns feelings and emotions as well as action. One cannot begin the process of habituation soon enough. …