Classically, women playwrights are almost completely absent. There were virtually no women writers until at least the 17th century. This fact initially led feminist critics to ignore the classical period. In an article titled "Classical Drag: The Greek Creation of Female Parts," Sue Ellen Case states that because "traditional studies focused on evidence related to written texts, the absence of female playwrights became central to early feminist surveys” (132). Despite this absence of female writers, feminist critics analyze the role of women in ancient Greece in another way. Recently, feminist writers have been able to delve deeper into the classical period by examining female characters in the works of male playwrights. The construction of women in men's literature is extremely important. Peter Barry, in his chapter on feminist literary criticism in his book Beginning Theory: An Introduction to Literary and Cultural Theory, argues that observing female characters in men's works is important because it provides "models that indicate to women and men, which constituted an acceptable version of “feminine” and legitimate female goals and aspirations” (122). Examining the roles of women in the works helps us determine the type of roles that women and men occupy in relation to each other, in addition to the personal characteristics of the women. This insight into relationships between men and women adds a new layer of knowledge for feminist critics. The representation of women by female writers differs greatly from the representation of women by male writers. Women, as portrayed by men, represent stereotypes of real women. In other words, “feminist criticism can assume that the images of...... middle of paper ... are cultural and cultural evidence of the role of women in ancient Greece. Despite the fact that he is indeed a man, Aristophanes does a good job of capturing certain aspects of his female characters: their drive to succeed, their natural coquetry, the general desire to end war through diplomacy, and their devout servitude to the gods. Aristophanes also has a very good understanding of the social situation of women of his time. For example, he knows where the line of rebellion would lie: if husbands forced wives to have sex, they would have to give in. He knows how they end up relying on the judgment of their husbands, particularly in political matters. Finally, he knows that their concerns are above all internal. However, it generally misunderstands or distorts many aspects of the female character. Feminist literary criticism would not fail to highlight these divergences.