The Changing Roles of Powerful Women: A Literary and Historical Evaluation

This thesis seeks to examine Agrippina the Younger and Theodora’s lives through a historical and literary lens to determine how and why they were able to obtain their power, and the ways in which the authors vilified them. I do this primarily by examining the works of historical scholars– past and present. Looking specifically at certain events in their lives and the different ways authors recount them tell us both what happened and how they were perceived. This has led me to conclude that because Agrippina and Theodora ventured outside traditional gender roles into the male sphere of power, authors like Tacitus and Procopius reformulated their historical narrative to depict them in a negative way. By focusing on their appearances, sexual activity, and ambition, these authors sought to undermine their power and portray them as being responsible for the failings of the Roman empire. By looking at the sources in this way, we are able to critically evaluate the historical narratives by bypassing misogynistic opinions to see that women often held significant positions of power; something that is not often taken seriously.