Classificació geogràfica

Europa > Grècia

Moviments socio-culturals

Grups per àmbit de dedicació

Sanitàries > Mèdiques

Sanitàries > Llevadores / Parteres

Personatge
Grabado

Agnodice

Athens s. IV B.C.E. | Athens s. IV B.C.E.

Període d'activitat: Des de 400 a.C. fins 300 a.C.

Classificació geogràfica: Europa > Grècia

Moviments socio-culturals

Grups per àmbit de dedicació

Sanitàries > Mèdiques

Sanitàries > Llevadores / Parteres

Context de creació femenina

Prehistoric gatherer women discovered and used the healing properties of plants. In Egypt, there were already female doctors or surgeons before 3000 BC and, around 1500 BC, the schools of Sais and Heliopolis were accessible to women such as Zipporah and Queen Hatshepsut. In Mesopotamia, female healers were very important and in Greek cities there were female doctors and surgeons, but their role was restricted to that of midwives. Popular medicine also stood out: one of the first herbalists was Artemisia II of Caria. In Athens, in the 4th century BC, women were prevented from practicing medicine because they were accused of performing abortions; this was the context for Agnodice. In Rome, many doctors who also wrote treatises stood out, such is the case of Elephantis, Laïs, Olympias of Thebes, Antiochis and Metrodora. Among the women who wrote about gynaecology and obstetrics, the texts of Cleopatra and Aspasia stand out, which were the most important up to the work of Trotula in the 11th century.

Ressenya

Agnodice was a Greek physician and gynaecologist who lived during the 4th century BC. She studied medicine in Egypt and practiced as a doctor in Athens, disguised as a man. Her recognition among women caused suspicion among the rest of the doctors who accused her of seducing her patients. At the Areopagus, Agnodice revealed her status as a woman and was accused of violating the law that prohibited women and slaves from practicing medicine. Women organised in her defence and the law was changed.

Activitats

Angles

Espanyol

Valencià

Justificacions

  • Important Greek doctor and gynaecologist.
  • Asserted her right to choose a profession.
  • Caused a women's revolt.

Biografia

The story of Agnodice is an example of women united for a common cause, even in the most matriarchal of societies. The source for this story is a letter by the historian Hyginus, published in 1687 by Mrs. Cellier, a well-known English midwife.
More than two thousand years later, feminists still argued that female doctors were essential to protecting the modesty of patients. Agnodice dressed as a man and went to Alexandria around 300 BC to study medicine and obstetrics with the famous physician and anatomist Herophilos. 
When she returned to Athens, still disguised as a man, Agnodice successfully practiced medicine among the women of the aristocracy. According to an amusing version of this story, the Athenian doctors, who from the beginning were adept at protecting their professional interests, were very jealous of the success of this new doctor. They accused Agnodice of being "one who corrupts the wives of men." To confuse them, Agnodice then revealed that she was a woman, but in doing so she exposed herself to persecution, both as a female doctor and for having practiced medicine under false pretences.
Organised resistance came to fruition. Agnodice was released and was allowed to continue practicing dressed and combed as she wanted. Later, the law was changed: from then on, free women could study and practice medicine, as long as they only treated women. Upper-class Greek women took to the study of medicine, and their influence was to spread throughout the Roman Empire.
 
Alic, Margaret (2005). “El legado de Hipatia”. Madrid: Siglo XXI, pp. 43- 44, (retrieved on 14-05-2021), <https://books.google.es/books?id=yFEdvT1lQioC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false>

Obres

Bibliografia

 
- Alic, Margaret (2005). El legado de Hipatia. Madrid: Siglo XXI, pp. 43- 44, (retrieved on 14-05-2021), <https://books.google.es/books?id=yFEdvT1lQioC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false>

- Feijoo, Benito Jerónimo (1740/2007). “Cartas eruditas, y curiosas (volume II, letter XVII)”, Proyecto Filosofía en español, Fundación Gustavo Bueno, (retrieved on 14-05-2021). <http://www.filosofia.org/bjf/bjfc217.htm>

- Ferrer Valero, Sandra (2014). "La primera ginecóloga, Agnódice (siglo IV a.C.)", Mujeres en la historia, (retrieved on 14-05-2021), <https://www.mujeresenlahistoria.com/2014/06/la-primera-ginecologa-agnodice-sigloiv.html>

- Higinio. “Fábulas (274,10-14)”, Biblioteca Augustana, (retrieved on 14-05-2021), <https://www.hsaugsburg.de/~harsch/Chronologia/Lspost02/Hyginus/hyg_fabu.html#c274>

- Muñoz Páez, Adela. (2017). Sabias. La cara oculta de la ciencia. Barcelona: Debate, pp. 71-75.

- Panero Gómez, Ana (2013).” Recorridos olvidados: la flâneuse”, in Arte y Ciudad - Revista de Investigación, nº 4, Complutense University of Madrid, p. 53, (retrieved on May 14, 2021), <https://dialnet.unirioja.es/descarga/articulo/4965294.pdf>

Enfocament Didàctic

-CUC: Bloque Raíces clásicas del mundo actual. Vida cotidiana;  Bloque Continuidad del patrimonio cultural.  Literatura, arte y ciencia.

-Griego Bachillerato: Bloque legado y patrimonio.

-Historia 1º ESO: Bloque  Sociedades y territorios, referido a Grecia.

Documents