Overview

This innovative study uses one well-documented moment of violence as a starting point for a wide-ranging examination of the ideas and interactions of pagan philosophers, Christian ascetics, and bishops from the fourth to the early seventh century. Edward J. Watts reconstructs a riot that erupted in Alexandria in 486 when a group of students attacked a Christian adolescent who had publicly insulted the students' teachers. Pagan students, Christians affiliated with a local monastery, and the Alexandrian ecclesiastical leaders all cast the incident in a different light, and each group tried with that interpretation to influence subsequent events. Watts, drawing on Greek, Latin, Coptic, and Syriac sources, shows how historical traditions and notions of a shared past shaped the interactions and behavior of these high-profile communities. Connecting oral and written texts to the personal relationships that gave them meaning and to the actions that gave them form, Riot in Alexandria draws new attention to the understudied social and cultural history of the later fifth-century Roman world and at the same time opens a new window on late antique intellectual life.

Full Product Details

Author:   Edward J. Watts
Publisher:   University of California Press
Imprint:   University of California Press
Volume:   46
Dimensions:   Width: 15.20cm , Height: 1.80cm , Length: 22.90cm
Weight:   0.454kg
ISBN:  

9780520294868

ISBN 10:   0520294866
Pages:   312
Publication Date:   23 February 2017
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Out of stock  
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Table of Contents

List of Illustrations Acknowledgments 1. The Anatomy of a Riot Part 1. Historical Discourse in Intellectual Communities 2. Personal Legacy and Scholastic Identity Internal Historical Discourse and Its Transmission: The Example of Eunapius Defending Communal Historical Discourse: Porphyry's Life of Plotinus 3. Past, Present, and Future in Late Neoplatonic Historical Discourse The Life of Isidore and its Sources Eating, Drinking, and Learning Neoplatonic History Oral Tradition and Scholastic Identity in the Alexandrian Schools of the 480s Paralius's Beating within its Scholastic Context Fifth-Century Christian Violence in Neoplatonic Communal Memory Teaching Ethics after the Riot Part 2. The Past Within and Outside Late Antique Monasteries 4. History and the Shape of Monastic Communities The Koinonia The Historia Monachorum and Visitors' Exposure to Ascetic Oral Traditions Social Relations and the Power of the Master: Barsanuphius and John 5. Anti-Chalcedonian Ascetics and their Student Associates The Limits of Ascetic Influence Finding the Ascetic and Intellectual Balance The Ascetic and Sophistic Melange of Zacharias Scholasticus A Student Riot and its Commemoration: The Life of Paralius Part 3. Defining the Alexandrian Bishop 6. Creating the Legend of the Alexandrian Bishop Mechanisms of Episcopal Power Athanasius and the Politics of Self-Definition Athanasius's Restoration and Redefinition The Athanasian Historical Legacy 7. Theophilus and Cyril: The Alexandrian Bishop Triumphant Theophilus and the Historical Character of Athanasius The Legacy of Theophilus 8. Peter Mongus Struggles with the Past Chalcedon and the Redefinition of the Alexandrian Bishop Peter Mongus and Resistance in an Age of Compromise Peter Mongus and the Beating of Paralius A Riot's Aftermath 9. Conclusion Appendix 1. Dating the Riot Appendix 2. How Much Should We Trust Zacharias Scholasticus? Bibliography Index

Reviews

A noteworthy contribution to the study of Late Antiquity. Bryn Mawr Classical Review (BMCR) Watts makes the people and events vivid and relevant to the reader. Book News A commendable account of campus life, student Christian activism, and episcopal oversight in Alexandria. Journal Of Theological Studies There is much here to admire. -- Thomas Sizgorich Church History Stds In Christiany And Culture Edward Watts has written a wide-ranging, thoughtful, and stimulating exploration of what can be learned from a single episode. -- T.D.BARNES Catholic Historical Review Watts deftly weds a minutely detailed examination of a specific event to wider macro-history. -- Justin Pigott Prudentia Well-researched [and] carefully argued... Watts has an excellent sense of what needs to be explained for non-specialists. -- Victor Castellani European Legacy

Author Information

Edward J. Watts, Associate Professor in the Department of History at Indiana University, is the author of City and School in Late Antique Athens and Alexandria, winner of the Outstanding Publication Award from the Classical Association of the Midwest and South.

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