An intimate and human portrait of Perpetua, a third-century woman author who was idealized as a Christian martyr On March 7, 203, in the monumental amphitheater at Carthage, Vibia Perpetua was one of five Christians who met their deaths after refusing to venerate the Roman emperor Septimius Severus and his son. Perpetua stood out from the other four, and in fact from all the other martyrs of her era and before: she was an aristocratic married woman with an infant son, and she is the first female prose author whose work survives. Offering a probing new translation of Perpetuas extraordinary prison diary and situating the life behind that diary within the turbulent late Roman Empire, Sarah Ruden tells the story of Perpetuas remarkable feat of selfinvention as a martyr. As she builds on Perpetuas own words and integrates them into their religious and historical contexts, Ruden shines a light on Perpetuas disarming candidness, her brashness, and her naļvété. In contrast to traditional portrayals of the saint as a brave but submissive young woman, Rudens narrative reveals a complex individual who flaunts a vivid public persona as a martyr while at the same time navigating the emotions of a mother, daughter, sister, and friend approaching death.
