In Rome, aristocratic women lived in large, luxurious houses and were expected to copyright family honor by maintaining a dignified and relatively private lifestyle. While some women from elite families participated in cultural and social events, they generally had limited interaction with the outside world beyond their immediate social circles.
Pompeii, on the other hand, was a smaller city with a more relaxed social structure. Women, including those from non-elite backgrounds, appear to have had more public visibility. Frescoes and graffiti indicate that Pompeian women attended public events, visited markets, and socialized in ways that suggest they had greater day-to-day freedoms than some Roman women.
One unique aspect of Pompeian society is the large amount of graffiti found on the city’s walls, much of it written by or about women. Some inscriptions suggest women had a role in public entertainment, supported political candidates, and even engaged in flirtatious or humorous exchanges—offering a rare glimpse into the personalities and social interactions of Pompeian women.
Marriage and Family Life
Marriage customs in both Rome and Pompeii followed traditional Roman laws. Women were typically married in their early teens, and their main societal role was to bear children and manage the household. However, evidence from Pompeii suggests that some women had greater control over their personal and economic lives, possibly due to the city's commercial nature.
The House of the Vettii, one of the most famous houses in Pompeii, belonged to two wealthy freedmen, indicating that freed slaves could rise to prominence. It is likely that freedwomen also played a significant role in Pompeian society, with more opportunities to own property and influence their communities compared to those in Rome, where social mobility was somewhat more restricted. shutdown123