Similarities And Differences Between Turria And Hortensia

There are many written sources from ancient Greece and Rome, both clear and ambiguous, but nevertheless offer much to our understanding of individual women from antiquity. This exercise will discuss, with the use of ancient sources, three women from antiquity: the ‘Turia’ believed to be the subject of the funerary oration known as Laudatio Turiae, in which a husband grieves for an exceptionably loyal wife from the first century BC; Neaera, the former courtesan subjected to a prosecution concerning the legality of her status as an Athenian citizen from the fourth century BC in Athens; and the Roman Hortensia, famed for her 42 BC speech in opposition to taxes imposed on female citizens by the Triumvirate. This essay will attempt to present adequate
First to be dealt with are the similarities of ‘Turia’ and Hortensia. Both are upper-class Roman citizens and have male relations subjected to the proscriptions of 43 BC, therefore they both belong to the same time-period and society in 43 BC. The two women are adept in challenging foundations of Roman law and state; in ‘Turia’s’ case, she successfully validated her father’s will and was instrumental in publicly exposing the cruelty of Marcus Lepidus ; and Hortensia publicly challenged the highest seat of Roman government with success. And these same reasons account for their leadership qualities with the addition of ‘Turia’s’ management and defence of her household . Consequently, the women appear to be remarkably similar and the only difference is omitted from the text and that is whether Hortensia was married as ‘Turia’ was; she could have been but the text does not confirm. Now that the two Roman women have been compared they should be used collectively in contrast to Neaera. Neaera is Greek and precedes the Roman women by three centuries, but while there is a divide in time there is a more significant divide in their social classes. Neaera was born a slave and raised as a prostitute whereas the Roman women were of an upper-class background born into wealthy families and no doubt had a carefree upbringing. Neaera’s childhood years are the complete opposite and they were most likely filled with much abuse, exploitation and exposure to crime on a regular basis. From a social perspective, her marriage arrangements for Phano are of a much lower status than those of ‘Turia’s’ relatives. She is depicted as the antithesis of the two Roman women in every way. While ‘Turia’ and Hortensia are immortalised as courageous and brave women, Neaera is subjected to the reputation of a conniving prostitute of ‘licentious behaviour’ in the only exiting traces of her in