Perpetua, Felicity, and the Paradox of Horror

Abstract

The Passion of Perpetua and Felicity is one of the most well-known texts from the earliest Christian centuries. However, at its heart lies a paradox. The story describes the arrest, imprisonment, torture, and violent deaths of two young women. If events such as these were to happen right in front of us, most of us would turn away. Our sense of fear and horror might be magnified by a sense that we could also become victims of this kind of senseless violence. However, this literary account has held the attention and admiration of Christians since the third century. There has been an abiding desire to enter into this story, to live it (at least allegedly) through the eyes of one of the victims, and to relive and celebrate it through various cultic practices. How can we explain this? This paper explores the psychological appeal of the Passion through the lens of horror theory and what has been called the paradox of horror, associated with the paradox of painful art. By applying insights from horror theory, the paper explores the irresistible draw of a story full of elements that should provoke revulsion.