The social and legal position of widows and orphans in classical Athens / Richard V. Cudjoe.

Part One: The Athenian Widow in Law and Society -- Part Two: Orphans in Classical Athens.

My main efforts in the following pages have been to examine ancient Athenian laws and customary practices that shaped the lives of widows and orphans in classical Athenian society, taking evidence mainly from the Attic orators. Among the main issues discussed in part one are the impact of the cycle of external and internal wars, and the other demographic factors on family life and structure, some of the laws and regulations about widows and orphans, and the nature of the archon's protection for widows and orphans in the society. I have discussed also the socio-legal implications of widowhood against the background of the widow's status in the o/Tcos of her deceased husband and her general maintenance and support. One of the two categories of women in classical Athens who, together with male minor orphans, enjoyed special legal protection was the pregnant widow. Thus part one discusses also the status of the pregnant widow in the society. In this chapter, I have attempted to interpret the law cited in section 75 of Demosthenes' speech, 43 Against Makartatus, in Regard to the Estate of Hagnias, to establish how the pregnant widow stood apart from her ordinary widow or woman counterpart in the eyes of the law and society. The final chapter of part one examines the widow's rights to property vis a vis women's property rights in Athenian society.