Reddit reviews Hypatia: The Life and Legend of an Ancient Philosopher (Women in Antiquity)
We found 4 Reddit comments about Hypatia: The Life and Legend of an Ancient Philosopher (Women in Antiquity). Here are the top ones, ranked by their Reddit score.
Oxford University Press USA
TIL white people were originally a small tribe of albino outcasts.
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>As noted above, he was not a pagan and his opposition to Cyril was a purely political struggle for hierarchical supremacy in the city and had nothing much to do with religion. And he was not murdered by anyone, though he did get a stone to the head in a demonstration which in turn sparked the tit-for-tat factional killing that ended with the political assassination of Hypatia.
>
>>"Cyril next began to plot against his other major Pagan opponent in Alexandria, Hypatia. As a woman who represented heretical teachings, including experimental science and pagan religion, she made an easy target."
>
>More fantasy. We have no evidence she did any "experimental science" and there is no reliable evidence that her learning, any "heretical teachings", her paganism or even her gender were factors at all. She seems to have been targeted simply because she was a political ally of Orestes in a factional squabble.
>
>>"He preached that Christ had no female apostles, or teachers. Therefore, female teachers had no place in Christianity. This sermon incited a mob led by fanatical Christian monks to attack Hypatia as she drove her chariot through Alexandria. "
>
>Again, this is straight from the 2009 movie. There is no such preaching even hinted at in the sources.
>
>>"The Dark Ages Begin"
>
>Anything that we could call "the dark ages" began somewhat later and in far off western Europe, following the fall of the Western Roman Empire. Hypatia lived in the Eastern Empire, which lasted for another 1000 years
>
>>"Hypatia’s students fled to Athens."
>
>There is no evidence of them fleeing anywhere.
>
>>"The Neo-Platonism school she headed continued in Alexandria until the Arabs invaded in 642."
>
>So much for her death bringing on a dark age then.
>
>>"When they burned the library of Alexandria, using it as fuel for their baths, the works of Hypatia were destroyed."
>
>The legend of the Caliph Omar burning any library in Alexandria is dated to centuries after his time and is almost certainly nonsense. And the actual Library had ceased to exist before Hypatia was even born anyway, as explained above.
>
>>"Her writings are only known today through the works of others who quoted her "
>
>No they aren't and no they didn't.
>
>>"Cyril, the fanatic Christian who incited her destruction, was made a saint."
>
>At least they managed to get one thing right. These articles about Hypatia are usually riddled with nonsense, but I count at least 26 errors of fact or outright fantasies and inventions in this one. I think this must be some kind of record.
>
>Sources:
>Maria Dzielska, Hypatia of Alexandria (harvard, 1995)
>Edward J. Watts, Hypatia (Oxford, 2017)
>As noted above, he was not a pagan and his opposition to Cyril was a purely political struggle for hierarchical supremacy in the city and had nothing much to do with religion. And he was not murdered by anyone, though he did get a stone to the head in a demonstration which in turn sparked the tit-for-tat factional killing that ended with the political assassination of Hypatia.
>
>>"Cyril next began to plot against his other major Pagan opponent in Alexandria, Hypatia. As a woman who represented heretical teachings, including experimental science and pagan religion, she made an easy target."
>
>More fantasy. We have no evidence she did any "experimental science" and there is no reliable evidence that her learning, any "heretical teachings", her paganism or even her gender were factors at all. She seems to have been targeted simply because she was a political ally of Orestes in a factional squabble.
>
>>"He preached that Christ had no female apostles, or teachers. Therefore, female teachers had no place in Christianity. This sermon incited a mob led by fanatical Christian monks to attack Hypatia as she drove her chariot through Alexandria. "
>
>Again, this is straight from the 2009 movie. There is no such preaching even hinted at in the sources.
>
>>"The Dark Ages Begin"
>
>Anything that we could call "the dark ages" began somewhat later and in far off western Europe, following the fall of the Western Roman Empire. Hypatia lived in the Eastern Empire, which lasted for another 1000 years
>
>>"Hypatia’s students fled to Athens."
>
>There is no evidence of them fleeing anywhere.
>
>>"The Neo-Platonism school she headed continued in Alexandria until the Arabs invaded in 642."
>
>So much for her death bringing on a dark age then.
>
>>"When they burned the library of Alexandria, using it as fuel for their baths, the works of Hypatia were destroyed."
>
>The legend of the Caliph Omar burning any library in Alexandria is dated to centuries after his time and is almost certainly nonsense. And the actual Library had ceased to exist before Hypatia was even born anyway, as explained above.
>
>>"Her writings are only known today through the works of others who quoted her "
>
>No they aren't and no they didn't.
>
>>"Cyril, the fanatic Christian who incited her destruction, was made a saint."
>
>At least they managed to get one thing right. These articles about Hypatia are usually riddled with nonsense, but I count at least 26 errors of fact or outright fantasies and inventions in this one. I think this must be some kind of record.
>
>Sources:
>Maria Dzielska, Hypatia of Alexandria (harvard, 1995)
>Edward J. Watts, Hypatia (Oxford, 2017)
>As noted above, he was not a pagan and his opposition to Cyril was a purely political struggle for hierarchical supremacy in the city and had nothing much to do with religion. And he was not murdered by anyone, though he did get a stone to the head in a demonstration which in turn sparked the tit-for-tat factional killing that ended with the political assassination of Hypatia.
>
>>"Cyril next began to plot against his other major Pagan opponent in Alexandria, Hypatia. As a woman who represented heretical teachings, including experimental science and pagan religion, she made an easy target."
>
>More fantasy. We have no evidence she did any "experimental science" and there is no reliable evidence that her learning, any "heretical teachings", her paganism or even her gender were factors at all. She seems to have been targeted simply because she was a political ally of Orestes in a factional squabble.
>
>>"He preached that Christ had no female apostles, or teachers. Therefore, female teachers had no place in Christianity. This sermon incited a mob led by fanatical Christian monks to attack Hypatia as she drove her chariot through Alexandria. "
>
>Again, this is straight from the 2009 movie. There is no such preaching even hinted at in the sources.
>
>>"The Dark Ages Begin"
>
>Anything that we could call "the dark ages" began somewhat later and in far off western Europe, following the fall of the Western Roman Empire. Hypatia lived in the Eastern Empire, which lasted for another 1000 years
>
>>"Hypatia’s students fled to Athens."
>
>There is no evidence of them fleeing anywhere.
>
>>"The Neo-Platonism school she headed continued in Alexandria until the Arabs invaded in 642."
>
>So much for her death bringing on a dark age then.
>
>>"When they burned the library of Alexandria, using it as fuel for their baths, the works of Hypatia were destroyed."
>
>The legend of the Caliph Omar burning any library in Alexandria is dated to centuries after his time and is almost certainly nonsense. And the actual Library had ceased to exist before Hypatia was even born anyway, as explained above.
>
>>"Her writings are only known today through the works of others who quoted her "
>
>No they aren't and no they didn't.
>
>>"Cyril, the fanatic Christian who incited her destruction, was made a saint."
>
>At least they managed to get one thing right. These articles about Hypatia are usually riddled with nonsense, but I count at least 26 errors of fact or outright fantasies and inventions in this one. I think this must be some kind of record.
>
>Sources:
>Maria Dzielska, Hypatia of Alexandria (harvard, 1995)
>Edward J. Watts, Hypatia (Oxford, 2017)