Lysistrata

I enjoyed this play because it demonstrates women's ability to outsmart men and it is proof that women may never be underestimated. In a world where women are constantly put down, it is interesting to see a twist in the plot. The irony in the play is that although these women end up getting what they want and outsmarting their men, they do so by exploiting themselves as mere sex objects.

Lysistrata encourages the women to tease and taunt their husbands without actually having sex with them. In this she believes the men won't be able to resist their wives, thus they will agree to do whatever it is the women demand of them. Lysistrata makes sexual comments on the woman's bodies in such a way that suggests she is only concerned with using their sexual potential to gain peace and end the war.

In a way these women begin to look at themselves as men do and I think Lysistrata personifies a man in this play. She resists all sexual urges completely and dedicates herself to encouraging the women to remain committed to their oath. I took a lesson from this play that perhaps it is not so bad to exploit oneself for a cause that one feels deeply about. Before reading this play I may have strongly gone against this type of action: using "what you've got to get what you want."