(...) A study of the legal position of widows and orphans in classical Athens appears necessarily specific. But it requires one to ask certain general and non-legal questions. It is generally recognized that the sight of widows in Athenian society during the classical period was ubiquitous, and their number high enough to create a potential social problem. This omnipresence of widows in classical Athens would surely signify a corresponding high rate of orphans in many Athenian households that could also pose equally a compelling problem to the society. It is thus not surprising that we have instances of funeral speeches in Athens in which addresses are made to widows and orphans, highlighting their plight and elucidating what steps the state intends to take to cater for their interests. All this is in a way a recognition of the disruptive force of the widows, and the vulnerability of the young orphans in the society. What then does it mean to say that the presence of widows in classical Athens was a common sight with a corresponding high rate of orphans in many Athenian households? What circumstances must have prescribed for some Athenian wives and children such status as widows and orphans respectively in relation to other women and children of the population? How could the familiar sight of widows and orphans potentially have sociological consequences for the society in which they lived? Naturally, one is tempted to observe that such wives and children had become widows and orphans because of the death of their husbands and fathers. But such a terse observation is not likely to demonstrate and reflect clearly the enormity of the situation, as death is necessarily the end of human life. A better and more informative answer therefore requires a sort of demographic exposition on classical Athens if we should have a deeper appreciation of its social impact on Athenian society. (...)
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