Two Wars?

Aristophanes emphasizes the theme of war throughout the entire play- two wars in fact. The battle of the sexes, and the battle of the Greeks. His message is simple: war is bad. He is concerned of the war and its aftermath.  While the Athen and Spartan men fight it out on the battle field, the women are left to suffer. The Gender differentiated effects on war are largely ignored. While the women commence their strike, the men suffer. The men fight physically, yet the women fight against gender roles. There is a clear parallel between the two wars. Clearly, the war has brought extreme hardship to both sides. It teaches us that women had a significant role in the war, in contrast to the stereotypes. Lysistrata states that the "salvation of all Greeks lies in the women's hands". Women are as just strong as the men.  The stakes were incredibly high- Greek will be ultimately demolished if the war does not cease.