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'...ego interim ad eum conversus sum qui supra me accumbebat et rogavi "quae est mulier illa quae huc atque illuc discurrit?"
"uxor" inquit "Trimalchionis; Fortunata appellatur, quae nummos modio metitur. et modo, modo quid fuit? noluisses
panem de manu illius accipere. nunc Trimalchionis topanta est"...'
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Translation: Meanwhile, I, speaking to him who was lying ahead of me, asked, 'who is that woman that runs this way and that?''the
wife' he says 'of Trimalchio; She is called Fortunata who counts her money by the bushel. And the other day what was she?
You would have refused to accept bread from her hands. Now she is Trimalchio's all in all.'
As we can see from this passage, taken from the MILLIONAIRE'S DINNER PARTY, a modified version of Petronius' Satyricon,
women are portrayed in an objectified unpleasant manner in early Roman literature, used to prove a point of wealth and status
in a far more gender discriminatory society. This website aims to inform the reader of the predicament of women in ancient
Rome, specifically in reference to the social commentary in Petronius' novel.
Here Fortunata is used as a symbol of not only Trimalchio's wealth but also of his immense power and status in the community.
The other guest suggests that Fortunata was once of an uncouth, lower class so much so that even bread would not be healthy
or wise to accept from her hands. She is described as unworthy and as a low life; However, Trimalchio, having "saved"
her from her post as a lower class citizen, has given her a life, many women could only dream of - one of bountiful wealth
and glory not to mention a far higher social class.
Amongst a frivolous party for fortunate, if not wealthy men, the mention of a woman in a serious manner would be quite
rare and therefore, this shows the emphasis put on this particular anecdote as not only a form of characterisation of Trimalchio
but it also adds a touch of social commentary by the author.
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