The 'anti-Manichaean' passage in Confessions 3 and its 'Manichaean audience'

This article is an analysis of Confessions 3.6.10 to 3.10.18 to support an argument that many strategies in Augustine's masterpiece are eminently suited to communicate with a Manichaean audience and designed to convince such an audience of the errors of Manichaeism. The passage in question is genera...

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Bibliographic Details
Author:Annemaré Kotzé
Published: S.n., s.l., 2008
Volume:62
Pages:187-200
Language:English
Periodical:Vigiliae Christianae
Number:2
Format:Article
Topic:- Biography > Relations and Sources > Manichaeism. Neo-manichaeism > Manichaeism related to Augustine > anti-Manichean
- Works > Confessiones > Conf. III > Conf. III, 10-18
- Works > Confessiones > Topics > [Critique du manichéisme]
- Works > Confessiones > Topics > [Destinataire]
- Works > Confessiones > Topics > [Manichéisme]
Status:Active
Description
Summary:This article is an analysis of Confessions 3.6.10 to 3.10.18 to support an argument that many strategies in Augustine's masterpiece are eminently suited to communicate with a Manichaean audience and designed to convince such an audience of the errors of Manichaeism. The passage in question is generally described as strongly anti-Manichaean, but I argue that the argumentative and emotional tone of the passage combined with the amount of space spent on a few core aspects of Manichaeism make the passage an effective protreptic directed at a specific category of 'Manichaean' readers.