Everything about Eromenos totally explained
In the
pederastic tradition of
Classical Athens, the
eromenos (
Greek ἐρώμενος, pl. ἐρώμενοι, "eromenoi") was an
adolescent boy who was in a love relationship with an adult man, known as the
erastes (ἐραστής).
The term for the role often varied from one
polis to another. In Athens, the eromenos was also known as the
paidika; in Sparta they used
aites (hearer), a term also used in
Thessaly; in Crete the boys were known as
kleinos (glorious) and if they'd fought in battle with their lover, as
parastathenes (one who stands beside).
The ideal eromenos - as well as his erastes - was expected to be ruled by the principles of
enkrateia, or "self-mastery," which presumed an attitude of moderation and self-restraint in all matters.
Characteristics of the role
The youth was expected to put up resistance to the entreaties of the various erastai seeking to win his affection, in order to test their seriousness of purpose, and to choose the most deserving. As a result, in Attica, eromenoi were assiduously courted, and were the object of street fights and arguments among the young men vying for their affection. Some of the eromenoi moved in with their lovers, with whom they lived for some period of time.
The Greeks recognized and valued that time in the life of a boy when he was considered to be ripe for loving; the Greek word used to describe such a boy was
hôraios, meaning "in season" or "in bloom". Eromenoi were generally males aged twelve to seventeen. Though the eromenos was valued for his beauty, he was valued even more for his modesty, industriousness and courage. In
Plato's
Symposium, the character Aristophanes says that the eromenoi who "love men and enjoy lying with men and being embraced by men" are not shameless, but rather "the best of boys and lads, because they're the most manly in their nature" (191e-192a). (Though this may have been a view held by aristocratic Athenians of Plato and
Aristophanes' type, the nature of Platonic dialogues makes it uncertain whether it was actually held by either Plato or Aristophanes themselves.)
The eromenos was typically portrayed as undergoing
pedagogical training and while he typically was also the object of affection and passion, he wasn't necessarily sexually engaged. When present, sexual expression is depicted in the iconography as having consisted primarily of fondling and
intercrural sex. Anal sex appears to have been less common, yet frequent enough to be a topic of comedy, and of criticism based on the opinion that it was a practice which was shameful and risked feminizing the boys who grew to like it.
Upon reaching the age of maturity (ca. eighteen years), the eromenos would cut his long hair and become eligible for taking on the role of
erastes and courting and winning an eromenos of his own.
"Eromenos" is traditionally translated into
English as "beloved", although this isn't a perfect match for the concept.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Eromenos'.
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