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.