Anna's adaptation of what is arguably one of the finest monologues for women ever to be written is from the comedy Lysistrata by well-known ancient Greek comedic playwright, Aristophanes. The play was first performed in the Lenaia Festival of 441 BCE, one of many Greek festivals of theatre, which contained mainly comedies.
"The main protagonist of this monologue, is Lysistrata. An Athenian woman who is completely fed up with the war between the cities of Athens and Sparta (the Peloponnesian War, to be precise). Lysistrata rallies the women of Greece to use the only power of persuasion they have in that day and age - withholding sex from their husbands. The purpose is to pressure the men to peace talks. She eventually succeeds in getting all the women, on both sides of the war to agree. In this scene, the women’s activism has progressed. They have now taken over the Acropolis citadel in Athens, where the gold and other sources of funding for the war and the city are kept. The Magistrate comes to arrest them, however he finds himself in a battle of words with Lysistrata. She has a few choice words for him as she describes the women's plight during the war."
"Though the play is a comedy, the scene I have chosen is no farce. My version is a modernized adaptation for 2022 and is sadly as relevant today as it was when Lysistrata was written 2,463 years ago. Let that sink in for a moment. It is 2,463 years later and we are still having largely the same conversation. Granted, it is a conversation that has changed and shifted over time. It is thankfully often no longer one that is specifically between men and women. Gender roles have evolved in highly positive directions, at least in some parts of the world. We are recognizing what positive masculinity looks like compared to toxic masculinity. We are also recognizing what positive femininity looks like compared to toxic femininity. We are recognizing that the positive forms of each of these involve all genders being in balance with the masculine and feminine that lives in each of us, regardless of what sexual organs we happen to be born with."
"The conversation about war and peace, however, has not progressed as much. The wars continue, the purpose for the wars remains the same, and the mass devastation that they wreak on the many for the profit of the few remains unchanged. Sometimes war still looks like bombs and bullets. Other times it looks like undermining economies and political systems, and/or destroying ecosystems or souls. This too is changing however, step by step. Humanity’s job is to keep moving along the positive evolutionary path that we are already on. We still have some ways to go, but we have also already come a long way. The energy and courage to keep steadfastly moving along the path of connection, cooperation and compassion comes from recognizing that and taking a moment to appreciate that whenever we can.” - Anna S.
15 сен 2024
