Apuleius

2nd-century Numidian Latin-language writer, rhetorician and philosopher

Apuleius was a philosopher and rhetorician tried for using magic to win an older and richer bride. He's better known for his novel about the cult of Isis, the tale of Cupid and Psyche, and the adventures of its hero, Lucius.

Apuleius
depiction of Apuleius
depiction of Apuleius
Bornc. 125
Madaurus
Diedc. 170
OccupationNovelist, writer, public speaker
Notable worksThe Golden Ass

Apuleius was born in about 125, in Madauros, Numidia. It is not known what his first name was, although writers in the Middle Ages often called him "Lucius Apuleius" because the hero of his novel was called Lucius.[1][2] Apuleius was educated in Carthage and Athens, and then traveled around the Mediterranean learning about religious cults. In 158 he delivered a speech recorded as Apologia Apuleii 'The Apology of Apuleius' in the town of Sabratha, Tripolitania (modern Libya), as a defense against the charge of using magic to win a richer and older bride called Pudentilla. Apuleius, in his Apology, provides a glimpse into second century Roman law, the economic and social conditions of Roman North Africa, and the attitude towards magic.

Apuleius died in about 175 A.D., having written his novel, known as either The Golden Ass or The Metamorphoses (also Transformations of Lucius), and the Apology, as well as books on Plato, Socrates, and Aristotle.

References change

  1. P. G. Walsh, (1999) The Golden Ass, page xi. Oxford University Press.
  2. Julia Haig Gaisser, (2008), The fortunes of Apuleius and the Golden Ass: a study in transmission and Reception, page 69. Princeton University Press.

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