Women of the Wheel: Fortuna

Fortuna is the Roman goddess of fortune and luck. Often depicted holding a ship’s rudder and wheel, she steers fate for better or worse. Her wheel of fortune became a well known literary symbol we still use to depict the ups and downs of luck today.

This month, we’re talking about Women of the Wheel – icons who turned motion into momentum and spun their legacies on spokes, skates and potter’s wheels. These women harnessed the power of the axle, pushing their crafts and professions forward through their works and lives.

History classes can get a bad rap, and sometimes for good reason. When we were students, we couldn’t help wondering... where were all the ladies at? Why were so many incredible stories missing from the typical curriculum? Enter, Womanica. On this Wonder Media Network podcast we explore the lives of inspiring women in history you may not know about, but definitely should.

Every weekday, listeners explore the trials, tragedies, and triumphs of groundbreaking women throughout history who have dramatically shaped the world around us. In each 5 minute episode, we’ll dive into the story behind one woman listeners may or may not know–but definitely should. These diverse women from across space and time are grouped into easily accessible and engaging monthly themes like Educators, Villains, Indigenous Storytellers, Activists, and many more. Womanica is hosted by WMN co-founder and award-winning journalist Jenny Kaplan. The bite-sized episodes pack painstakingly researched content into fun, entertaining, and addictive daily adventures.

Womanica was created by Liz Kaplan and Jenny Kaplan, executive produced by Jenny Kaplan, and produced by Grace Lynch, Maddy Foley, Brittany Martinez, Edie Allard, Carmen Borca-Carrillo, Taylor Williamson, Sara Schleede, Paloma Moreno Jimenez, Luci Jones, Abbey Delk, Adrien Behn, Alyia Yates, Vanessa Handy, Melia Agudelo, and Joia Putnoi. Special thanks to Shira Atkins.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):
Hello from Wonder Media Network. I'm Jenny Kaplan and this
is Womanica. This month, we're talking about women of the
wheel icons who turned motion into momentum and spun their
legacies on spokes, skates and Potter's wheels. These women harness
the power of the axle, pushing their crafts and professions
forward through their works and lives. See the wheel of

(00:23):
fortune spin and watch for where this fickle goddess decides
where your future lands. Today we're talking about the Roman
goddess of fortune, fate, and luck. Let's talk about Fortuna.
Fortuna has been venerated from antiquity to modern civilization. She's
often depicted a top of ball, holding a cornucopia and

(00:46):
a ship's rudder or wheel. Her cornucopia or horn of
plenty is where good things flow in abundance, representing her
ability to grant prosperity. Her ship's rudder indicates her ability
to steer the fates of those who worship of her.
In some instances, Fortuna is depicted as blind, symbolizing that
good luck does not always come to those who seem

(01:07):
to deserve it. Fortuna is often depicted with a bit
of an edge to her. She can be a deceptive
and capricious goddess, playing with the destinies of her subjects.
Her unstable nature meant she wasn't always met with the
biggest fans. The ancient Roman playwright Pacuvius bluntly described Fortuna
as follows. Philosophers say that Fortuna is insane and blind

(01:29):
and stupid, and they teach that she stands on a
rolling spherical rock. They affirm that wherever chance pushes that rock,
Fortuna falls in that direction. They say she's insane because
she is cruel, flaky, and unstable, stupid because she can't
distinguish between the worthy and the unworthy. Roman religion was
not based on divine grace, but rather on fetus, a

(01:52):
mutual faith between the gods and humans. Trusting in this
divine assistance could help master unknown forces surrounding them. Fortuna
didn't quite play fair. One piece of Fortuna's equipment stands
out through history to today, her wheel of fortune. The
first recorded appearance of the wheel of fortune or a
rota fortune, comes from Cicero and Tibulus, two Roman statesmen

(02:16):
and poets. Descriptions of this image flourished and Fortuna's wheel
of fortune quickly became a symbol to describe the haphazard,
volatile nature of life. Fortuna's wheel is often depicted with
four shelves representing stages of human life. Figures line each shelf,
marking different periods of her reign. In Seneca's tragedy Agamemnon,

(02:39):
a chorus addresses Fortuna's cyclical nature. The chorus sings, whatever
fortune has raised on high, she lifts, but to bring low.
The wheel of fortune doesn't stop spinning until someone meets
their end death. If you're seeking help and want to
consult the gods, perhaps you should avoid Fortuna. However, if

(02:59):
you feel felling a change of pace and want to
feel the ups and downs of life, maybe you could
ask for Tuna to spin her wheel and see what happens.
All month, we're talking about Women of the Wheel. For
more information, find us on Facebook and Instagram at Wamanica
Podcast special thanks to Liz Kaplan, my favorite sister and
co creator. Talk to you tomorrow.