Aristophanes Mocks the Women in His Plays

To what extent do you agree with this statement?
Toni Yordanov
“Women at the Thesmophoria” is a comedy by the Greek playwright Aristophanes, including a wide mixture of real and invented characters and referring to other plays from the same time. In the main role is the tragedian Euripides, who is considered to denigrate the women and they want to kill him. Now his friend Mnesilochus sneaks at the Thesmophoria and tries to defend his friend, but the things become quite messy…
Indeed, this play represents the women in a quite unfavorable light. It seems that all they do at the festivals is to drink wine – that is proved by the conversation between Mica and Mnesilochus, when she asks him what they’ve been doing the previous year firstly, secondly and thirdly – the answer is: drinking. Aristophanes builds up an alcoholic image of the women, making them look like drunkards rather than respectable wives and mothers. But the wine is not their only sin - Mnesilochus tells some scandalous stories about hidden-lovers, how women like to be rogered by slaves and mule-drivers, buying babies etc. All women are shocked to hear such things at a public place, but none of them says: it’s a lie. Here Aristophanes mocks the women directly, characterizing them as sex-maniacs, liars, mean and vicious beings. Moreover, the punishment they invent for Mnesilochus’ words is to “plunk her bush and singe her” – primitive, vulgar and even childish, but Aristophanes aim is to make them look stupid. Strangely but fact, no one of the women sees that Mnesilochus is actually a man, but they have to take his clothes off in order to find out the truth. One final way the women are mocked is there “religious activity” – actually such thing is missing. Truly, the ceremonies at the Thesmophoria were kept in secret and no one can be sure what is happening there. Aristophanes’ idea is that women are trying to get rid of their husbands for a couple of days and spend their time in drinking and some...