| Revision as of 05:55, 1 November 2006 view sourceA.V. Marraccini (talk | contribs)5 editsNo edit summary← Previous edit | Revision as of 12:28, 1 November 2006 view source Haiduc (talk | contribs)15,071 edits more about sex. less about hair which is far too obvious to deserve any mentionNext edit → | ||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
| In the ] of ], the '''eromenos''' (] ἐρώμενος, pl. "eromenoi") was an ] boy who was in a love relationship with an adult man, known as the ] (ἐραστής). The relationship was typically portrayed as being of a ] and while it was also typically affectionate and passionate, it was not necessarily sexual. |
In the ] of ], the '''eromenos''' (] ἐρώμενος, pl. "eromenoi") was an ] boy who was in a love relationship with an adult man, known as the ] (ἐραστής). The relationship was typically portrayed as being of a ] and while it was also typically affectionate and passionate, it was not necessarily sexual. When present, sexual expression is depicted in the iconography as having consisted primarily of fondling and intercrural sex. Anal sex appears to have been less common, yet frequent enough to be a topic of comedy, and criticism based on the opinion that it was a practice which was shameful<ref>], "Zeus and Shame" (Perry 109, Chambry 118, Gibbs 528), in ''Fables''</ref> and risked feminizing the boys who grew to like it. | ||
| ] redfigured plate (tondo) with a scene of ] from ] in ] (530-430 BCE)]] | ] redfigured plate (tondo) with a scene of ] from ] in ] (530-430 BCE)]] | ||
| Line 6: | Line 6: | ||
| The eromenos was valued for his beauty, but even more for his modesty, industriousness and courage. In ]'s '']'' eromenoi were described as the "best" boys, and their characteristic was that "they love men and enjoy living with men and being embraced by men" | The eromenos was valued for his beauty, but even more for his modesty, industriousness and courage. In ]'s '']'' eromenoi were described as the "best" boys, and their characteristic was that "they love men and enjoy living with men and being embraced by men" | ||
| Upon reaching the age of maturity (ca. eighteen years) the eromenos would cut his long hair and become eligible for taking on the role of erastes and courting and winning an eromenos of his own |
Upon reaching the age of maturity (ca. eighteen years) the eromenos would cut his long hair and become eligible for taking on the role of erastes and courting and winning an eromenos of his own. | ||
| "Eromenos" is traditionally translated into ] as "beloved", although this is not a perfect match for the concept. | "Eromenos" is traditionally translated into ] as "beloved", although this is not a perfect match for the concept. | ||
Revision as of 12:28, 1 November 2006
In the pederastic tradition of Classical Athens, the eromenos (Greek ἐρώμενος, pl. "eromenoi") was an adolescent boy who was in a love relationship with an adult man, known as the erastes (ἐραστής). The relationship was typically portrayed as being of a pedagogical nature and while it was also typically affectionate and passionate, it was not necessarily sexual. When present, sexual expression is depicted in the iconography as having consisted primarily of fondling and intercrural sex. Anal sex appears to have been less common, yet frequent enough to be a topic of comedy, and criticism based on the opinion that it was a practice which was shameful and risked feminizing the boys who grew to like it.
Different terms were used in other poleis, such as aites (hearer) in Sparta and kleinos (glorious) and parastathenes (sidekick) in Crete.
The eromenos was valued for his beauty, but even more for his modesty, industriousness and courage. In Plato's Symposium eromenoi were described as the "best" boys, and their characteristic was that "they love men and enjoy living with men and being embraced by men"
Upon reaching the age of maturity (ca. eighteen years) the eromenos would cut his long hair and become eligible for taking on the role of erastes and courting and winning an eromenos of his own.
"Eromenos" is traditionally translated into English as "beloved", although this is not a perfect match for the concept.
See also
References
 | This article does not cite any sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Eromenos" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
 | This article about lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer topics is a stub. You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it. |
- Aesop, "Zeus and Shame" (Perry 109, Chambry 118, Gibbs 528), in Fables