In my paper I am researching legal cases containing accusations of magic in the Roman Imperial period. One of the sources I am looking at is Apuleius’ Apology. When looking at this source I am focusing on the question: how is it that this situation could come about and what does that imply about magic and the law during the Imperial period?
As we discussed in class, Apuleius finds himself put on trial with accusations of magic. He is accused of using love magic to seduce his wife Pudentilla into marrying him. Her father-in-law and rest of her family had wanted to keep her fortune within their family and thus are upset by the turnout of events and have taken him to court with these accusations. We don’t actually know the outcome of the trial, but his speech is so convincing, by highlighting the absurdity of the charges, that most scholars agree that he must have been acquitted.
This source is important because it is the only surviving example of a speech from a magic trial in the ancient world. Thus it is valuable in providing us with an example of both accusations of magic and the way in which someone could possibly go about defending themselves against these charges. It contains important aspects of social history and the way in which magic was viewed and could be used as accusations in a legal trial.
Why is it that these accusations have come about and why it that he is a believable suspect of magic? What is it about him that tells us about how magic could be used in court to tarnish the reputation of someone?
Apuleius is a philosopher which makes him more of a suspect of magic. Furthermore, he has gained a significant fortune in an unlikely marriage. His situation and even his persona is not normal. All of the charges against him are based around things that are out of the ordinary. Why would this woman marry him? Why would people collapse front of him? Why would he get married in the countryside rather than in the city? His actions overstep the boundaries of ordinary social behaviour in the community.
Graf has suggested that someone accused of magic would be a person who was on the margins of society. Their actions would be contrary to the normal social behaviour of the community and would thus upset the balance and threaten social order. He says:
The goal of the trial for magic is to resolve the crisis, either by permanently casting out the one who threatened the social structures or by definitively integrating that person. In either case, the social structures will be reaffirmed and order reestablished. (65)
Apuleius was not meant to come into such wealth and thus it appears that the prosecution may have resorted to accusations of magic to try and solve the problem. The situation of Apuleius comes about because it is a challenge to the social structure of that society:
… we find rivalry, with rather unequal competitors. … In accusing him of magic, Apuleius’s adversaries tried to explain this reversal of fortunes. … Mainly by laying the charge of magic, the adversaries were trying to incite the very closed society of this town to get rid of an element that threatened the established structures; the situation was not without its dangers [Rufinus threatens to kill Apuleius]. (68)
From his speech it appears that the prosecutors may have brought upon the case in a hurry and thus their evidence is not sound and Apuleius responds by ridiculing it (Bradley, 206). The manner in which he pokes fun of the prosecution masks the seriousness of the accusations brought against him. Had he lost the case, exile and loss of status would have likely been the result (Bradley, 207). Thus, the humorous tone of the source may mislead us to think that these were menial charges brought against him when, in fact, they could be quite serious.
Apuleius’ speech reveals all of the abnormal behaviour and events that have occurred and thus portray him as a plausible suspect of performing magic and consequently a threat to society. His tactic of discrediting his suitors certainly makes the charges of magic appear ridiculous. He brushes aside the accusations, yet we must remember that these are more serious than he lets on. The source then is a possible indication of members of society using magic as a way of revenge or as a way of resolving social upsets. Finally, it also provides us with a possible, and seemingly effective, way in which a person could try to get out of these charges.
References:
Bradley, Keith. “Law, Magic, and Culture in the Apologia of Apuleius.” Phoenix 51.2 (1997) 203-223.
Graf, Fritz. Magic in the Ancient World. Trans. Franklin Philip. London: Harvard University Press (1997).
If only we had another courtroom speech on a charge of magic! With only the one it’s really hard to say if this was the usual strategy in defending oneself from accusations of magic, or if Apuleius was atypical (you wonder what someone would have claimed on behalf of a woman charged with the same offenses). The only comparanda that we really have are the declamations which sometimes touch on magic – but I think they always assume a woman is charged. So, it’s very hard to say it the strategy is unique to Apuleius or a general approach to defending against magic, as you point out.
(One note: in the Late Republic charges of magic use seem to have been standard invective charges against other members of the elite, not against outsiders alone.)