ASSIGNMENT | Gender Roles Set in Stone”

Write an essay that analyzes the representation of gender and gender roles as seen in Woman of Willendorf (prehistoric: c. 25,000–20,000 B.C.E.) from Ch. 15/Module 9 and Kouros/Statue of Standing Youth (ancient Greece: c. 580 B.C.E.)

As with Essay Project #1, there are no right or wrong answers here. This essay should present YOUR analysis of what the works of sculpture say about attitudes regarding gender and gender roles ”how the cultures in question define ideal men and women.

To initiate your thinking on this topic, you should consider the following key terms.

Woman of Willendorf. c. 25,000-“20,000 B.C.E. Limestone: plump, anonymous, relaxed, soft, spiritual, fertile, nude

Kouros (Statue of Standing Youth). c. 580 B.C.E. Marble: athletic, young, motion, ridgid, symmetrical, honorable, nude

Left: Woman of Willendorf. c. 25,000–20,000 B.C.E. Limestone.
akg-image /Erich Lessing

Right: Kouros. Statue of standing youth. c. 580 B.C.E. Marble.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Fletcher Fund, 1932 (32.11.1).

SAMPLE SOLUTION

The artifact popularly known as Woman of Willendorf or Venus of Willendorf dates to between c. 25,000 and 20,000 B.C.E, making it among the oldest remaining artifacts. It is one of the most popular of about 40 portable human figures that had been discovered intact by the early 21st century. This paper provides a detailed analysis of the representation of gender and gender roles as depicted in Woman of Willendorf.
Besides the written sources of information, researchers and art historians heavily count on the various objects to learn about past events and ancient human beings. The various features of the Woman of Willendorf may superbly inform its original meaning. The most notable and conspicuous aspects of the artifact’s structure are those that relate to the reproduction processes and matters child-rearing. The artist emphasized…