Amazons: Ancient Greek History

It appears obvious that Amazons were women who did not fit into the atriarchal Athenian establishment's Rules For Women. They rejected typical marriage roles - some sources say they simply were uninterested in male marriage partners, others suggest that the women did marry men who stayed at home to take care of the children and perform other "feminine" tasks while the women participated in public life as warriors and leaders. Inseparable from their approach to love, sex, marriage, and reproduction is their approach to battle - in fact, Herodotus says they could not marry until they had killed an enemy in battle. Amazons show up in myth principally as warriors, and were said to have conquered many nations and be fierce fighters. As Sue Blundell says, "Whatever the reason for this, we can be sure that it had nothing to do with heartwarming messages about the empowerment of women." Yes, of course that's depressing, but it is undeniably true.