How we cite our quotes: Line
Quote #1
Lysistrata: "But my heart's on fire, Calonice, and I'm terribly annoyed about us women. You know, according to the men we're capable of any sort of mischief—"
Calonice: "And so we surely are!"
Lysistrata: "But when they're told to meet here to discuss a matter of no trifling importance, they sleep in and don't show up."
Calonice: "Honey, they'll be along. You know, it's a lot of trouble for wives to get out of the house: we're giving hubby a hand, or waking up a slave, or putting the baby to bed, or bathing it, or feeding it a snack." (9-19)
One reasons why women weren't able to speak out against war was that is was considered proper for women to be quiet and cute and ornamental. Another reason was that they were simply too busy. In these lines we get a hint of the wide range (and sheer freaking quantity) of women's responsibilities as managers of the household.
Quote #2
Men's Chorus: "If you live long enough, you'll get many surprises, yes sir!
Well, Strymodorus, who in the world ever thought we'd hear
that women, the blatant nuisance we've reared in our homes,
now control the Sacred Image
and occupy my Acropolis,
And to top it all, with bolts and bars
close off the citadel gates?" (257-265)
To hear the Men's Chorus describe it, the home isn't a place of peace, love, and harmony. It's a place of conflict. Why else would they refer to women as "the blatant nuisance we've reared in our homes"? They seem to feel especially betrayed that these women—whom they saw as being under their thumbs—are now asserting themselves on the political level. But do you think these old geezers actually had much of a hand in "rearing" these women?
Quote #3
Women's Chorus: "Fly, fly, Nicodice,
before Calyce and Critylla go up
in flames, fanned all around
by nasty winds
and old men who mean death!
I'm filled with dread: am I too late to help?
I've just come from the well with my pitcher;
I could hardly fill it in the dim light of dawn,
in the throng and crash and clatter of pots,
fighting the elbows of housemaids
and branded slaves; zealously
I hoisted it onto my head, and to aid the women,
my fellow citizens faced with fire,
here I am with water!" (321-335)
When the women of the Women's Chorus go to the well, they fight against housemaids and "branded slaves," who have been sent to bring it back for their households. This gives a hint at the range of people who were employed in rich Athenian homes. The wife was essentially the manager of the workforce. Later in the play, Lysistrata will argue that this managerial experience in the home makes women qualified to play a managerial role in the affairs of the city. You tell 'em, Lysistrata.