Aristomenes is an example of the hypo-masculine. By freezing up during a moment of confrontation and allowing women to take the active role he becomes less of a man. When the witches first enter the bedroom where Aristomenes and Socrates are sleeping, the bed is thrown over Aristomenes by their forceful entrance. Rather than make any move to remedy the situation Aristomene’s remains hidden. He watches the actions of the two elderly women, but he does nothing to stop them. Aristomene’s passivity is illustrated by his own feeling of being "transformed from Aristomenes into a tortoise"(8), because he is covered by the overturned bed. This animal is particularly evocative of slow movement and sedentary and this points to Aristomene’s own lack of action.

Even the witches see fit to point out the inactivity of Aristomene’s. One of the sister’s explains: "‘This good fellow,’ she said, ‘is Aristomenes the counselor. He proposed the escape, and n ow he lies close to death. He is lying on the ground, stretched out beneath the bed, watching all that is going on, and thinking that he will get away scot-free with insulting me’"(Book 1, Chapter 12). The witch clearly explains that Aristomenes is the person responsible for encouraging Socrates to escape. However, when push comes to shove, Aristomenes becomes immobilized with fear. Indeed, his fear physically manifests itself on Aristomenes as he listens to the witches speak about him: "‘In my desperate plight as I heard this, I broke out in a cold sweat, and my stomach turned over with fright, so that my shaking even disturbed the bed, which bounded up and down in spasms on my back’"(Book 1, Chapter 13). By letting fear overtake him to the point where he has no control over his body, further illustrates Aristomenes’ lack of manhood. Indeed, the witches speak of cutting off Aristomenes "manhood"(Book 1, Chapter 13). The irony in this statement is explicit, as Aristomenes is not behaving like a man.

Because of this passivity, Aristomenes is implicated in the death of Socrates. Aristomenes simply allows the witches to murder his friend in front of him without taking any action against them. Thus Aristomenes becomes culpable. Aristomenes realizes his culpability as he wonders what the reaction of others will be: ‘You could at least have clamored for help, even if a man your size couldn’t withstand a mere woman. What, you watched a man have his throat cut, and you kept quiet?’" (Book 1, Chapter 14). Thus Aristomenes himself realizes his own lack of masculinity. However, Aristomenes decides that, "the best course of action would be to steal away before daybreak..."(Book 1, Chapter 14). Thus Aristomenes proves himself even more of a coward because the only action he is willing to take is to escape a situation where he knows he should have acted. However, Aristomenes is unsuccessful even in his flight, for the gatekeeper noticing his untimely departure refuses to allow him to leave and suspects him of committing some crime. Because he cannot escape the situation by any other means, he decides to do so by committing suicide. The irrationality of it is that Aristomenes is willing to kill himself because he is afraid he will be killed for behaving like a coward and attempting to save his own life by hiding from the witches in the first place.

The act of the witches urinating on Aristomenes manifests his pathetic and unmanly nature. He, "remained still stretched out on the ground, lifeless and naked, shivering and soaked in ´ urine"(9). The urine functions as a stigma as Socrates, on waking, mentions the smell and refuses Aristomenes embrace on its account. It is even suggested that Aristomenes may have wet himself during the night. Ironically, the truth is much worse, since he allowed himself to be urinated on by two women. Also the urination is a way of emasculating Aristomenes further. The act of the two witches sitting astride him and urinating serves to show how he is so passive and immobile that it is as if he is being sexually dominated by the two women. Aristomenes is so haunted by his passivity and cowardice that he goes into voluntary exile in order to escape the shame of his actions.