[ Dzielska, Maria, Hypatia of Alexandria , Harvard University Press, Cambridge (Mass.)-London 1996, XII- 157 pp.]
The essay is built on a clear contrast between the "legend of Hypatia" and the historical reality. The first area is mostly in the works of a highly literary. According to this tradition, Hypatia is above all the "pagan martyr" in the dual sense witness the demise of the classical world and the Christian victims of intolerance. His tragic death is a sort of prelude to the Middle Ages, the barbarity of the "dark ages". The introductory part of the book is devoted specifically examine the most important features of this line of argument.
In a quick but effective reconnaissance, which is ideally resumed and completed the work of R. Asmus ( Hypatia in Tradition und Dichtung, Berlin 1907), are examined, first, the authors of the eighteenth century English and French that have contributed most to the formation the legend of Hypatia by the symbol of reason against obscurantism Church: Toland, Voltaire, Gibbon, Fielding. The focus then shifts Sull'Ottocento with Leconte de Lisle, Gerard de Nerval, Maurice Barres, Charles Kingsley. Hypatia became a romantic heroine, who embodies "the spirit of Plato in the body of Aphrodite," and addresses the Christian mob armed only with culture and beauty. Follow the British and American positivists such as JW Draper, forming a precursor of Hypatia of Marie Curie sacrificed on the altar of science: shooting interpretation by historians of science, as Van der Waerden, or more recently, M. Alice and the Dictionary of Scientific Biography .
No less attention is dedicated to Italian contributions (Diodata of Saluzzo Roero, Charles Pascal and Mario Luzi), German (Arnulf Zittelmann) and Canadian (Ferretti and Jean Marcel André). Rounding out the overview of the feminist literature, particularly Ursula Molinaro, and essays on Black Athena inaugurated by Bernal, which is the first victim of the oppression of Hypatia "colonial" in the Western Christian world against the Afro-Asian world, the true cradle of civilization, even dispossessed of this title.
the legend of Hypatia "oppose, however - this is the theme of the second part of the essay - a series of historical data, most notably the fact that most students and friends of Hypatia were actually Christians. He was a Christian, in particular, and the Bishop of Ptolemais, that Synesius of Cyrene, which remains the most famous of his students, whose letters - from A thoroughly examined. - Confirmation that the circle of Hypatia "real" pagans were to be few. There is even a tradition - but has always been considered unreliable - that was the same Christian Hypatia: Nestorian more exactly, and this would be born by the contrast with Cyril. In any event, even if the paganism of Hypatia, as already noted Hoche in 1860, there can be no doubt, the feeling is that it seeks - that is the basic thesis of Dzielska - to remain equidistant between pagans and Christians.
This attitude is demonstrated, according to A. From the fact that neither Hypatia, nor his students appear to have played an active role in the defense of the Temple of Serapis in Alexandria (destroyed in 391), defense and instead engaged a good number of exponents of Neo, most notably the Olympic Philosophy, held in Damascus in the Life of Isidore , and then ammonium, Helladic, and perhaps the same Claudian, paganus pervicacissimus , which in those years was still in Alexandria . This confirms the intention to remain neutral in the conflict between pagans and Christians, and reveal a kind of aristocratic detachment, typical of a mind prone to mathematical rationality, towards the religion of the masses and practices of a cult that borders on magic and divination. No coincidence that the sources describe as a follower of Platinum Hypatia, the neo-Platonic less compromised with this type of operation.
Hypatia, therefore, was not a "pagan assault" as Olympian, or a sworn enemy of Christians. But then why she was killed so brutally by a group of Christian fanatics, perhaps instigated by the bishop Cyril, however, and that were part of his personal guard, the so-called Parabolan? The pagan sources (mainly the Suda, which is based on fourth Hesychius of Miletus and up to three quarters on the Life of Isidore of Damascus) do not give a satisfactory answer, merely to give direct responsibility for the murder to Cyril, without examining the reasons for his hostility to Hypatia.
More light is cast on the episode instead of some patristic sources, especially Socrates School, always judged by the author of the story more detailed and more reliable. They've got it as scholars Hoche, Asmus, Praechter, Lacombrade (referred to also see the recent article written for the "Reallexikon für Antike und Christentum '), and Socrates is also based guide to the reconstruction of Dzielska.
Rumor says Socrates (HE VII, 15), Hypatia, which exerted a great influence on the imperial prefect of Egypt, Orestes, was opposed to reconciliation between him and Cyril. So one day she was attacked by a mob of Christians exalted, smashed and burned at the Cinarone. From this stemmed a big blame on Cyril of Alexandria and the Church itself. The background to the 'same episode are further clarified by Socrates (HE VII, 7 ff.). The prefect Orestes was a Christian. However, he tried to oppose the policy of Cyril.
After his election, Cyril had erected a defender of 'orthodoxy (that is, its vision of Christianity, which he will prevail at the Council of Ephesus), is oppressing dissidents, such as Novatianists that the followers of other religions, Jews (who managed to drive from Alexandria) and pagans . That could turn 'outbreaks dormant just after the events of 391, creating serious problems of public policy, a sphere of jurisdiction of the Empire. They had already been incurred, for that reason, very bitter conflict between Orestes and Cyril. Orestes had been arrested and tortured, on the recommendation of the Jewish community, an agent provocateur of Cyril. In retaliation five hundred monks, called for that purpose by their hermitage, had staged a violent demonstration against Orestes, and one of them, ammonium, wounded him with a stone. The prefect had him tortured to death, and Cyril had 'glorified as a martyr, which it renamed Taumasio.
In the "relentless war" (Socrates) between Orestes and Cyril, Hypatia must have Oreste provided - these are the conclusions of Dzielska - a kind of political support. Also From the letters of Hypatia Sinesio that exerted a significant influence on prominent political figures and military. Many imperial dignitaries were his pupils, and she had personal contacts with representatives of public life in Cyrene, in Constantinople and Syria. The same Suda speaks of a coming and going personality in front of his home show, this, that had aroused the wrath of Cyril. Using the support of Hypatia, Orestes must have formed a political party opposed to the bishop of Alexandria.
has been mapped out a scenario that sees not, or not so much a clash between pagans and Christians, as a clash between two Christian factions: an intransigent and "orthodox", led by Cyril, and respectful of the prerogatives of ' imperial authority and tolerant of other faiths, including Judaism and paganism itself. In this scenario - destined to repeat itself over the centuries - Hypatia was therefore not a minor part. It is clear, in fact, that she was siding with Orestes, in fact - as claimed by the A. - It was the main political support. The rumors about him, given by Socrates, therefore, were not entirely unfounded. But the hostility of Cyril against Hypatia could have other origins.
The best-known student of Hypatia, Synesius of Cyrene, was also one of the leading exponents of Christian Platonism, ie the phase of "acute Hellenization" of Christianity - the stage that will extend in Renaissance Platonism - that interprets the Trinitarian dogma in the light of Neoplatonic triad. Hadot has shown, Porphyry and Victorinus, the dependence of both, Victorinus and Sines, porphyria. But through Porfirio Sinesio had been in contact with the Chaldean Oracles , one of the key texts of the Platonic tradition. The influence of Oracles on Synesius perceived both in Hymns that De insomniis , is very strong, and formed the subject of detailed essay by Theiler, Die chaldäischen Orakel und die Hymnen des Synesios , then taken up by des Places in his edition of the Oracles and Garza in his edition of Sines.
This in turn raises a problem not easily solved: what nature was the teaching of Hypatia? Was it Hypatia the same origin of that process platonizzazione of Alexandrian Christianity that was to constitute a second reason for concern for a man. as Cyril, who looked with suspicion the same Origen as more greek than Christian? The sources (always the way Suda Hesychius) to attach comments to Diophantus Hypatia, the Conics of Apollonius, and identified with the work Prochêiroi kanonês of Ptolemy. Since this work is attributed to Hypatia, this should be the version of the same - the only form in which we own - generally attributed to Theon of Alexandria, but in reality (according to the hypothesis already advanced by Usener and taken up by Cameron) would be the result of work of her daughter. And because the codes attributed to Hypatia also the edition of the Book III Syntaxis commentary by his father, and comments on Diophantus and Apollonia are partly survived the first Arab in the comments, and to EuToch the second, we should have a most of his scientific production.
But Hypatia's teaching focused primarily, if not exclusively, on mathematics and astronomy, or follow other paths? The Dzielska on sheet A. Cameron ( Barbarians and Politics at the Court of Arcadius , Berkeley 1993), seems inclined to answer in the affirmative. In fact, if the De gift of Sines reflect the teachings of Hypatia not only for what concerns the construction of the astrolabe, but also for what concerns the relationship between theology and astronomy, it follows that the science of the stars, and then mathematics is a ascetic discipline preparatory to the ineffable, that is, towards the theology of the One. If we reflect the teachings of Hypatia, albeit only partially, the interests of Sines to the traditional gods of Egypt (De Providence) and from alchemy (in an almost certainly his, addressed to a priest of Serapis in Alexandria), one should conclude, as does Cameron, that the Oracles of the Chaldeans Hypatia was to account for - as for the other Neoplatonists - a kind of Bible.
But here, obviously, there is a difficulty. If the teaching of Hypatia was this, it becomes difficult to sustain, as the Dzielska that Hypatia and his circle were indifferent to the destruction of the Temple of Serapis. Especially since the building housed in its outer belt is also a rich library, "daughter of" the most famous library of the Museum. Although it is possible, after the painstaking work of EA Parsons ( The Alexandrian Library, London 1952), that the books were destroyed, is at least certain that they were largely stolen. In any case, the insult not only to religion, but at the same pagan culture was too big for one. educated woman, intelligent and sensitive as Hypatia remained indifferent.
is difficult, in fact, that the same woman-who objected to Cyril could have remained indifferent to Teofilo. How 'says John of Nikiu, Cyril did nothing but bring to completion the work of Theophilus. The arrival of Cyril must have pushed Hypatia to fight because they do not repeat the carnage perpetrated by Teofilo. Fortunately, not all Christians were like Cyril: there were men more open and tolerant, with which it was appropriate to take sides. This decision, unfortunately, was fatal.
The most valuable of the book of Dzielska lies in strict adherence to classical sources and the scientific literature, which offers an almost exhaustive examination, at the same time doing a useful work of spreading the same at a wider audience than specialists. Hence probably its only flaw, that the juxtaposition of "two" Hypatia. The first scientist aristocratic and "Plotinus" indifferent to the earthly disasters, on which the tragedy seems to fall as if by accident. The second, politically committed against intolerance and consciously hostile to Cyril. This defect, of course, derives from the fundamental dualism of sources, which describe, on the one hand, a victim only Hypatia (the pagan sources), on the other, Hypatia an active part in the story (the Christian sources). It is certainly a demonstration of the seriousness historiographical take account of both traditions. However, the legend, in this case, will always be a real advantage on the story: that of having a choice.
[ you can download and read the editorial review in the original format by clicking -> download PDF]
[published in: elenchos. Review of studies on ancient thought No XVIII / 2, 1997, pp. 416-21. ]
On the Internet:
On the Internet:
- Dzielska, Maria, Hypatia of Alexandria , Harvard University Press, Cambridge ( Mass.)-London 1996.
- Wikipedia: Hypatia .
