Perpetua’s Life

This chapter examines what facts we know about Perpetua’s life, context, and background: her companions in martyrdom (Felicitas; Revocatus; Saturus; Saturninus; Secundulus); her age, social status, and family (especially her father). It explores the mystery of her missing husband, who is never mentioned in the narrative, and examines her fraught relationship with her father. It also explores her relationship with her baby son and his future without her; the other female martyr in the group, Felicitas, who gave birth just before the martyrdom; Perpetua’s education; the Latinity of the text of the Passio ; and the style of her portion of the narrative.

Archaeology · Art · Context (archaeology) · Literature · Martyr · Narrative · Style (visual arts) · Classical Antiquity Studies · Historical, Religious, and Philosophical Studies · History