Beyond magic in the Roman world : reconstructing cultural alterity and ritual deviance / Andrew Durdin, Florida State University.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Durdin, Andrew, Author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Ritual--Rome.

Ritual.

Magic--Rome.

Magic.

Rome--Social life and customs.

Rome.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (xvii, 336 pages) : digital, PDF file(s).

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Cambridge : Cambridge University Press, 2026.

Summary:

Beyond Magic in the Roman World reconsiders how Romans understood ritual, deviance, and alterity by moving past the modern category of 'magic.' Instead of treating magic as a single system, Andrew Durdin reveals how Roman authors used labels of ritual deviance to negotiate cultural diversity, social tension, and political authority. Drawing on texts from the late Roman Republic through the Principate, and written by Cicero, Lucan, Pliny, Tacitus, and Apuleius, he offers clear, engaging explanations as to how Romans classified the unfamiliar. The result is a vivid portrait of a society using language, accusation, and imagination to make sense of an expanding world. Durdin's book equips readers with the tools to recognize how scholarly categories - especially 'magic' - carry colonial and imperial legacies that shape interpretation. Accessible and compelling, his study will appeal to readers of Roman history, ancient religion, and anyone curious about how cultures create - and contest - categories of difference.

Notes:

Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 28 Jul 2026).

ISBN:

9781009863063