CLASSICAL STUDIES 212
MAGIC IN THE ANCIENT
GRECO-ROMAN WORLD
| Professor
Radcliffe G. Edmonds III Office:
Thomas 245
Office Phone: 526-5046
redmonds@brynmawr.edu
|
Thomas 110
MW 1:00-2:30; F to
be scheduled
Office Hours: MWF
2:30-3:30
or by appointment
|
Required Texts:
- Apuleius, The Golden Ass
(trans. P. G. Walsh)
- Betz, Hans D., The Greek Magical
Papyri in Translation (PGM)
- Gager, John G., Curse Tablets
& Binding Spells from the Ancient World
- Graf, Fritz, Magic in the
Ancient World
- Ogden, Daniel - Magic,
Witchcraft, and Ghosts in Greek and Roman Worlds:A
Sourcebook
Recommended Texts:
- Ankarloo & Clark, Magic and
Witchcraft in Europe: Greece and Rome
- Barton, Tamsyn, Ancient
Astrology
- Faraone & Obbink, Magika
Hiera: Ancient Greek Magic & Religion
- Mauss, Marcel, A General Theory
of Magic
Course Description:
Bindings and curses, love charms and
healing potions, amulets and talismans - from the simple spells
designed to meet the needs of the poor and desperate to the
complex theurgies of the philosophers, the people of the
Greco-Roman World made use of magic to try to influence the world
around them. In this course we shall examine the magicians of the
ancient world and the techniques and devices they used to serve
their clientele. We shall consider ancient tablets and spell
books as well as literary descriptions of magic in the light of
theories relating to the religious, political, and social
contexts in which magic was used.
Course Requirements:
Class participation:
Participation, of course, includes
attendance, since you cannot participate if you are not in class.
If, for some reason, you cannot attend class, please inform me in
advance. Each student should be prepared to discuss and answer
questions on the material covered in the lesson for the week.
Coming prepared with questions on the material is even better
than coming with answers to the basics. If, for some reason, you
cannot prepare for class, please attend anyway - you will be
better prepared for the next class.
Monday classes will be primarily
lecture, with some discussion of the general issues raised in the
secondary readings. On Wednesday (and possibly Friday), the class
will meet in smaller sections to discuss the primary and
secondary readings in greater detail. Several students will be
selected to lead off the discussion in the section for each
class, but every student should be prepared to contribute to the
discussion. Another way to participate is to post questions or
comments on the Blackboard chatlist for the class. All readings
not in the required textbooks will be available online in the
Blackboard site for this class. The online syllabus
(http://www.brynmawr.edu/classics/redmonds/csts21203.html) links
to the Blackboard site and viceversa.
Written Assignments:
There will be two short written
assignments designed for the students to demonstrate their
understanding of specific materials covered in class. These
projects may require some out of class research in addition to
the readings assigned for the class.
The first of these assignments will
require you to take the examples we've looked at in classs and
analyze them for their essential features — logical
structure, common patterns of formulation, etc. You will then
have to synthesize these features into a composite that
illustrates the features of, e.g., a love spell or a curse, and
discuss why what you have put together corresponds with the
ancient evidence.
The second assignment will involve
divination, specifically astrology. You will have to read a chart
on the basis of the excerpts from the ancient manuals I will give
you and then decide how to advise a client in a specific
situation. The task is not just to show your mastery of the
technical details but, even more importantly, of the social
dynamics that underlie divination in the ancient world.
Examinations:
There will be take-home Midterm and
Final Examinations for this class. Each of these examinations
will require students to apply the analyses and definitions
discussed throughout the course to primary materials. These open
book essay exams will ask you to analyze ancient materials that
we haven't studied in class in the same way we have been
analyzing materials in class — looking at the context —
what, who, why, where, how - and connections with other texts we
have looked at.
Grade Distribution:
Class Participation 30%
Written Assignments 30%
Midterm Exam 15%
Final Exam 25%
Supplementary
Bibliography
Week I -
Introduction — Issues of Definition
Topics:
- course introduction
- definition of magic
- magic vs. religion, magic vs.
science
- instrumental and symbolic action
- ancient contexts of magic
Readings:
- Graf, ch. 1-2
- Gager, Introduction
Week II - The
World of Ancient Magic
Topics:
- societies of the ancient
Mediterranean world
- magic and mystery — the lure
of magic
- types of magic
Readings:
- Graf, ch. 1-2
- Gager, Intro., ch. 8
- Apuleius, Metamorphoses
(esp. ch. 1-3, 9-10)
Week III -
Curses — Binding Spells for All Occasions
Topics:
- competition and cursing
- athletic contexts
- legal contexts
- binding and harming
Readings:
- Graf, ch. 5
- Gager, ch. 1, 3-6 (esp. # 3, 5,
44, 53, 88, 89, 117)
- PGM V 304-69, VII 390-3, VII
394-5, VII 396-404, 417-22, VII 423-28, VII
429-58, IX 1-14, X36-50 XXXVI 1-34, XXXVI
35-68, XXXVI 231-55, and LVIII
- Ogden 14, 168-196, 236, 247
Supplementary Readings:
- Magika Hiera ch. 1-3
- Faraone, Binding and Burying the
Forces of Evil
- Ogden in Ankarloo & Clark
Week IV - Love
Charms
Topics:
- gender and sex
- male vs. female subjects and
objects in erotic spells
- sex and violence
Readings:
- Faraone, "The Construction of
Gender in Ancient Greek Love Magic"
- Gager, ch. 2
- PGM IV 296-466, IV
1390-1495, IV 1496-1595, IV 1716-1870, IV
1870-1927, IV 1928-2000, IV 2000-2125, IV 2441-2621,
IV 2622-2707, IV 2708-2784, IV 2891-2942, IV
2943-2966, VII 300a-310, VII 459-77, VII 862-918, XVI
1-75, XVIIa, XXXII 1-19, XXXIIa 1-25, XXXVI
69-101, XXXVI 102-33, XXXVI 134-160, XXXVI 187-210, XXXVI
295-311, XXXVI 333-360, XXXVI 361-371, CI, CVII, CVIII, CXXII
- Supplementum Magicum nos. 46-51
(with PGM IV 296-466 and Gager # 27-29)
- Ogden 52, 76-81 (Deianeira),
197-213, 224-229 (iunx), 244, 248-255 (erotic amulets)
Supplementary Readings:
- Magika Hiera, ch. 8
- Faraone, Ancient Greek Love Magic
Defixio
Assignment
Week V -
Healing and Protection
Topics:
- defense against the dark arts
- amulets and antidotes
- repairing and healing
- thanks before and after
Readings:
- Gager ch. 7
- Bonner, Introduction
- PGM IV 1596-1715, [IV
2145-2240], IV. 3007-86,VII 193-221, 260-71,
311-18, 579-90, (pdm) xiv. 554-626, [XX], XXIIA 1-27,
XLIII 1-27, LXX, [LXXXIX], CXIV, CXV
- Ogden 256-276, 13, 47
- Handout - Ephesia Grammata
Supplementary Readings:
Week VI -
Prayer and Magic
Topics:
- thanks before and after
- supplication and coercion
- relationships with divine powers
Readings:
- Graf ch. 7
- Magika Hiera, ch. 7 (Graf)
- Texts in Appendix to MH 7; PGM I
262-347; IV 2241-2358; XII 14-95, Homer, Iliad I.33-51;
Hesiod, Theogony 535-557; Hesiod Works and Days 320-340;
Homer, Odyssey xiv.418-436; Isaeus 8.15-16, Pausanias
V.15.3-12; Orphic Hymns 17 to Poseidon, 3 to Night
- Ogden 233
Supplementary Readings:
- Depew, Reading Greek Prayers
- Mauss, The Gift
- Tambiah, The Magical Power of Words
Week VII - Fall Break
Week VIII
— Divination
Topics:
- divination in society
- magician and client
- theories of divination
- mechanics of divination
Readings:
- Graf, Magic and Divination
- Turner, Divination as a phase in a
social process
- Luck, Divination (parts I & II)
- #72-94
- PGM I 1-41, I 262-347,
II 1-64 II 65-184, III 187-262, III 263-75, III 282-409,
III 424-66, IV 930-1114, IV 3086-3124, IV 3209-3254,
VII 319-34, VII 335-47, VII 348-358, VII 359-69,
VII 540-78, VII 664-85, VII 703-726, VII 727-739, VII
740-55, VII 795-845,VII 1009-16, VIII
64-110.
- Ogden 144-155 (156-167), (25-31),
36, (42), 112
Supplementary Readings:
- Magika Hiera, ch 6
- Gordon, Quaedam Veritatis Umbrae
- Konstan, Evidence from Divination
Week IX -
Astrology
Topics:
- astrology as divination
- astrology as cosmology
- astrology and society
Readings:
- Barton, Ancient Astrology, ch. 4
& 5
- Luck, Astrology - #97-118
- Firmicus Maternus
- Dorotheus Sidonius
- Neugebauer, Greek Horoscopes
Supplementary Readings:
- MacMullen, Social History in
Astrology
Astrology
Assignment
Week X -
Alchemy
Topics:
- alchemy and cosmology
- mechanics of alchemy
- alchemy and science
Readings:
- Jung, Visions of Zosimus
- Taylor, F. S. "A Survey of
Greek Alchemy"
- Leyden and Stockholm Papyri
(selections)
- Zosimus, On Excellence
- Zosimus, On the Letter Omega
- Ogden 46
- PGM XII 193-201
Week XI -
Theurgy
Topics:
- philosophy and magic
- theories of theurgy
- practical theurgy — means and
ends
Readings:
- Johnston, Rising to the Occasion
- PGM IV.475-829 (Mithras Liturgy), XIII. 1-343 (8th Book of Moses)
- Iamblichus, On the Mysteries,
Excerpts
- Proclus, On The Sacred Art
- Theurgy Readings (handout)
Supplementary Readings:
- Smith, Towards Interpreting Demonic
Powers
- Apuleius, On the God of Socrates
- Plutarch, On the Genius of Socrates
- Plutarch, On the Face in the Moon
Week XII - The
Magician’s Craft
Topics:
- magician as religious specialist
- becoming a magician - the
sorceror's apprentice
- tools of the trade - books and
materials
- Greeks and Egyptians — social
contexts, Thessalos of Trales
Readings:
- Graf, ch. 4
- Betz, Introductions
- Moyer, Ian, Thessalos of Tralles
- PGM I 1-42, I 42-195, IV
1-25, IV 26-51, IV 52-85, IV 154-285; XIII
1-343, 344-645, 646-734, 735-1077
- Ogden 13-19, 44, 45, 53, 54,
- Apuleius, Metamorphoses (ch.
11)
Supplementary Readings:
- Smith, J.Z., The Temple and the
Magician
- Ritner, R.K., Egyptian Magical
Practice under the Roman Empire
- Brashear - ANRW, part I
- Smith, M. The 8th Book
of Moses and How It Grew
Week XIII -
The Portrait of a Magician
Topics:
- practitioners of magic, victims of
magic
- women and foreigners, weirdos and
quacks
- social context of depictions of
magic
- labelling the other vs.
self-labelling
Readings:
- Graf, ch. 6
- Ogden 55-107, 144-145, 155, 157,
214-223
Thanksgiving Break
Week XIV -
Accusations of Magic
Topics:
- social context of accusations of
magic
- witchcraft and the law
Readings:
- Graf, ch. 3
- Magika Hiera, ch. 10
- Apuleius, Apology
- Hunink, Introduction to Apologia
- Ogden 278-300
Supplementary Readings:
- Phillips, Socio-religious
- Bradley, Keith "Law, Magic,
and Culture in the Apologia of Apuleius"
Week XV -
Definitions and Theory
Topics:
- defining magic
- magic and religion; magic and
science
- performative language and symbolic
systems
- conclusions
Readings:
- Smith, Trading Places
- Versnel, Some Reflections on the
Relationship
- Tambiah, The Magical Power of Words
Supplementary Readings:
- Aune, Magic in Early Christianity
- Braarvig, Magic: Reconsidering the
Grand Dichotomy
- Segal, Hellenistic Magic: Some
Questions of Definition
- Thomassen, Is Magic a Subclass of
Ritual?
Take home final exam
Supplementary
Bibliography