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Ancient and modern

Why the Ancient Greeks thought adultery was worse than rape

Consent didn’t matter. Family – and property – did

25 October 2014

9:00 AM

25 October 2014

9:00 AM

A footballer serves his sentence for rape, insisting on his innocence. Debate rages whether he should play again. To us, rape is taken to be the most serious of sexual crimes. But would it have happened had he committed adultery? Of course not.

Ancient Greeks would have been baffled. For them rape was the usual violent behaviour, a fact of life, and consent did not come into it.

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