Sappho seems to have been an intriguing figure. Early into her bio the author mentions that she was of significant wealth, which led to leisure time, which led to her poetry. This is a common theme throughout history. The leading thinkers, writers, and historians were often fairly well off. This makes a certain amount of sense as one might not expect the common Joe Schmoe laborer to have the means, free time, and education to produce such a magnum opus. From this, one would expect that this prejudice in who is writing would influence the narrative of history, producing gaps and “silences” of the “others”. While the sampling of Sappho’s poetry which we read was lovely, it is equally intriguing to me what another woman of lower status would have written about the nature of love and beauty and how it might differ from a woman of leisure’s perspective.
Homosexuality in Ancient Greece isn’t an alien concept, however I almost exclusively think of male homosexuality in the Greek context. The presence of female homosexuality is intriguing. How socially acceptable was female homosexuality in the context of the time and place. Did it have the same basic fundamentals as male homosexuality with an older, experienced individual along with a younger individual assuming a more passive role? Was this limited to Lesbos or was female homosexuality more widely prevalent? Did this affect Sappho’s reception as a poet, whether positively or negatively? It brings up a lot of interesting questions.
Certainly by the classical era, not very acceptable, threatening to the overall model of lover beloved, means woman had to be active... I think the overt eroticism of the poetry held a similar appeal then as it does now. Interesting to ponder about eros in different classes and what non leisure poetry would look like.
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