ABSTRACT
This chapter provides a detailed analysis of the language that Statius employs to express various types of economic and non-economic wealth. It discusses how Statius utilizes or extends traditional meanings within their specific contexts, and elaborates upon Bourdieu's theory of converted capital by pointing out occasional instances where Statius' language of wealth simultaneously signifies more than one type of valuable capital. The implication of divitiae as raw forms of economic wealth which are not spent, but saved, is emphasized by sepositas, etymologically, divitiae are riches mined from the earth, such as gold and silver, or provided by the earth such as agricultural products. Seneca devoted an entire dialogue to the subject of the vita beata, describing it in terms of the philosopher's true wisdom. Comparisons between temperate and intemperate economic management occasionally incorporate the stock example of the wealthy East, a region quintessentially prosperous yet associated with fiscal mismanagement.
