TITLE:
Capital as Power: A Discussion on the Social Ascent of Aspasia
AUTHORS:
Craig Potts, Susan Philip
KEYWORDS:
Aspasia, Capital, Hetaera, Legacy, Social Mobility
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Social Sciences,
Vol.13 No.4,
April
28,
2025
ABSTRACT: Aspasia of Miletus remains a somewhat enigmatic figure, overshadowed by the flood of male-centric narratives from fifth-century Athens. Her legacy is often reduced to her relationship with Pericles or her background as a hetaera, but there is far more to her story. Beneath these popular preconceptions lies a formidable individual whose social and political influence in Athens was significant. This paper aims to provide an overview of the factors that contributed to Aspasia’s extraordinary rise through the social strata. By examining how Aspasia effectively utilised her social capital—a collection of relationships, resources and reciprocated trust—we will demonstrate the relevance of capital accumulation within a social sphere and show how this contributed to Aspasia’s ascent to social prominence.