[2] The speech provides more details than any other about prostitutes of antiquity, and consequently a great deal of information about the sex trade in ancient Greek city-states (polis).
[9] Despite this, the speech tells us much about the life of an accomplished hetaera,[6] and is extremely valuable to historians as a source on women's lives in classical Greece.
[13] Nikarete trained the girls she purchased to be hetaerae,[1] calling them her daughters in order to increase the price her customers would pay,[14] and lived with them in Corinth.
[17][23] Around 376 BC, Timanoridas of Corinth and Eukrates of Lefkada paid thirty minae to purchase Neaira from Nikarete, at the high end of prices for hetaerae.
[25] As part of this deal, Neaira agreed to no longer work as a prostitute in Corinth, and so left the city for Athens with Phrynion, who had helped her buy her freedom.
[35] The arbitrators decided that Neaira was indeed free, and that in addition to this she was her own kyria (mistress);[36] this was an extremely unusual decision in a society where all citizen women, at least, had a kyrios (master).
[36] Sometime between 343 and 340 BC, Neaira was brought to trial by Theomnestus on behalf of his father-in-law Apollodorus, accused of xenias (representing herself as a citizen when in fact she was not).
Modern commentators have noted the weaknesses in Apollodorus' arguments,[33] though as the outcome of an Athenian trial depended heavily on what the parties involved could persuade the jury to accept,[5] and how much of their dishonesty they could get away with,[32] it cannot be said for certain that the suit failed.