The Wall of Silence around Sexual Assault from Ancient Culture to Modern Day

 Gianna Cerbone, Verrazzano Class of 2023, completing major in SLS

While some people in today’s society would like to believe the mistreatment and violence against women has improved since ancient times, this is unfortunately far from the truth. From the beginning of time to modern day, women have been inferior and looked at and treated as objects. Sexual assault and the silencing against women in ancient times in Greek Mythology can be compared to the MeToo Movement today.

A prime example of sexual assault that occurred in ancient Greek literature is the story of Philomela and Tereus, from the epic Metamorphoses, written by Ovid. Philomela’s sister Procne was married to Tereus. After Procne requested her husband bring Philomela to their home for a visit, Tereus set out to fulfill his wife’s wishes. As soon as Tereus saw Philomela, he did not control himself.  He was not concerned that taking Philomela’s virginity would affect his and Procne's relationship, or how it would impact the sister's relationship. Philomela tried to fight and scream but Tereus succeeded in committing the most savage of deeds against another person: rape. Philomela said she would tell everyone about the horrific offense he perpetrated against her and he knew his reputation would be tarnished. In an act of desperation, he took out his sword and cut out her tongue, silencing her so she could not speak about the offense. He violated Philomela not only through the actual rape, but through depriving her of the ability to speak. Philomela wished for death after being raped; however Tereus tortured her by making her live without being able to speak of the tragic event. In order to tell her story, she was able to weave a tapestry of the crime, and sent it to her sister Procne. The sisters teamed up to make Tereus eat his own son as punishment, but one could not determine whether he would have faced any repercussions otherwise.

This myth is said to have been published in 8 AD, and the context of this story could be confusing. However, the modern day campaign known as the MeToo Movement correlates with the same issues women have faced since ancient times. MeToo is a social movement meant to help victims all over the world speak out against sexual assault, and give survivors a platform to publicize allegations against their attackers. Usually when women try to share their stories of sexual assault they are threatened and silenced so the man’s reputation remains clean, while the violation is seen as the woman’s fault. In order to receive justice and punish these men, in 2006 women started to come together to break their silence. Joining together, women have gained more confidence to share their stories of rape.

Just like the women in the current movement, Philomela was silenced when her rapist cut out her tongue, forcing her to remain silent. Tereus, a powerful man who needed to protect his reputation had his way with his wife’s sister and almost got away with it. If Philomela did not have the skills to weave, nobody would have ever known of Tereus’s disgusting actions and he would have remained a superior man. If the MeToo Movement did not begin, women who have spoken out would not have shared their stories and would not have received any justice.

Although some progress has been made in efforts to make the world a safer place for women, there are still major improvements that need to be made to protect women from mistreatment and violence.