Ep. 104 Aspasia of Miletus: Why This Powerful Woman Had All the Men In Ancient Athens Talking

History Fix

This week, we're going all the way back to ancient Greece. We'll examine the story of Aspasia of Miletus, a woman who came to Athens around 450 BC and quickly became the talk of the town. Her name appears over and over again in writing from the time, Socrates wrote about her, Plato, Plutarch, Cicero the orator, Xenophon the historian, Athenaeus the writer, Aristophanes the comic playwright, Pericles the leader of the city-state of Athens. One woman’s name was on all of their minds: Aspasia of Miletus. They loved her. They hated her. They called her a great mind, a teacher, a master of rhetoric. They called a prostitute, a cheap whore, a brothel madam. They gave her credit for writing great speeches passed on to men. They gave her credit for starting great wars, the ruin of Athens. But who was Aspasia really and why was everyone talking about her? Join me to find out!

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Sources:

• Prisoner of History: Aspasia of Miletus and Her Biographical Tradition by Madeleine M. Henry (affiliate link)
• National Geographic "Greek City States"
• Lake Forest College "Everybody’s a Little Bit Sexist: A Re-evaluation of Aristotle’s and Plato’s Philosophies on Women" by Kayla Huber
• Encyclopedia Britannica "Pericles: Athenian Statesman"
• World History Encyclopedia "Aspasia of Miletus"
• World History Encyclopedia "Women in Ancient Greece"
• PBS "Aspasia"
• Brooklyn Museum "Aspasia Place Setting"
• Wikipedia "Aspasia"
• History of Women Philosophers and Scientists "Aspasia of Miletus"
• University of Chicago "Aspasia of Miletus"

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