Perpetua s Defiance Of The Young Christian Martyr

Throughout the life of the young Christian martyr, Vibia Perpetua, she was placed under strict expectations based on her gender by the Roman society. Perpetua defied the expectations placed upon her since birth by converting to Christianity, yet she still showed ambivalence towards her role as a woman in the new community. This essay will analyze Perpetua s defiance of the gender expectations of both the Roman community and Christian church and the way Perpetua defined her own role as a woman in conflicting societies. In Perpetua’s time, the Roman culture had strict views on gender and the role of a woman in society. Early Roman society families had a patriarchal structure meaning the father was the head of the family. The strongest tie within the family was that between a father and a daughter. Daughters were expected to â€Å"[forge] political and social ties† for fathers (Salisbury 6). A Roman daughter was favored the most; they received the best education overseen b y their fathers. The purpose of a strong education was â€Å"to pass on to their sons the values of Rome† as well as help her to be a good mother in the future (Salisbury 7). A woman’s purpose in the Roman culture was reproduction in order to continue lineage. In addition to strict family and social rules, Roman women joined cults with specific rituals for females to perform. A woman’s role in Roman society was â€Å"defined by cults†¦to preserve social order† (Salisbury 12). Women joined a specific cult depending on theShow MoreRelatedGender Roles Of Civic Duties And Raising Children1466 Words   |  6 Pagesof civic duties and raising children in her community because she was female. Perpetua defied the expectations placed upon her since birth by converting to Christianity and used the freedom of the Christian religion to show her independence and create her own role as a woman. This essay will analyze Perpetua s defiance of the gender expectation s of civic hood and motherhood of the Roman community, and how the Christian community allowed her to define her own identity as a woman on her own terms in