Hypatia of Alexandria

Written by Maria Dzielska
Translated by F. Lyra
Published by Harvard University Press

Anyone interested in the classical world has heard of Hypatia of Alexandria, one of the most accomplished women of the classical age, indeed, of any age. She was extremely well educated, known for her prowess in math, astronomy, and philosophy, particularly. Living in Alexandria during the end of the fourth century, Hypatia is known primarily through the letters left from her student, Synesius. Unfortunately, history has erased much of her life; we know a few details of her life and death, but only enough to fascinate readers, not enough to satisfy. Dzielska's major claim is that Hypatia, a Greek pagan, supported the "wrong" Christian political faction and ended up dead because of it.

The parallels with Socrates often make Hypatia the subject of scrutiny. Both were seen as dangerous by some elements within their local governments and both lived in some ways outside the status quo, holding beliefs that would be dangerous to some. Both were also killed - Socrates executed formally, and Hypatia torn to pieces by a raging crowd and the library burned. History has never been sure who exactly was behind Hypatia's death or if it was planned or just mass hysteria, but surviving texts claim that it at least had something to do with certain of the elements in the Alexandrian government. Why exactly they would be threatened by her and which faction exactly was behind the mob is unknown. In many cases, as Dzielska points out, we have evidence of individuals with whom she didn't seem to have conflicts, such as Bishop Theophilus, but not always with whom she did have conflicts, like, as Dzielska claims, St. Cyril.

The annotated source section is an invaluable catalog of useful texts on this period. While many of the texts are not out of print, as you would expect, they are usually available at any decent academic library or via interlibrary loan.

While Dzielska does a good job of discounting much of the nonsense that has been spouted about Hypatia over the centuries, Hypatia of Alexandria is not without flaws. Given that the great Library was so much a part of Hypatia's life, it seems strange that Dzielska neglects to provide much detail about it. History has as many stories, sources, and rumors about the Library as we do about Hypatia and her death - why not include those, too? Also, to claim that her death was politically rather than theologically motivated, it seems that the author should provide more background about the political situation at the time; that might help support her notion about Cyril's involvement.

All in all, Hypatia of Alexandria is a solid work of scholarship reducing the number of foolish rumors that surround the history of Hypatia and replacing them with a mixture of solid truths and a few reasonable guesses. At the very least, this work increases the interest in Hypatia, which will hopefully result in increased scholarship and perhaps fruitful research. Anyone interested in classical history, the history of educated women, or Greek Alexandrine politics would be interested in this book, as would those readers who enjoy a good historical mystery.

Grade: B

Review submitted by Dindrane