Editing Apuleius (section)

{{Short description|2nd-century Numidian Latin-language writer, rhetorician and philosopher}}
{{distinguish|text=[[Lucius Appuleius Saturninus]], a Roman demagogue, or others with the name Apuleius or [[Appuleia (gens)|Appuleius]]}}
{{Infobox philosopher
| name = Apuleius
| image = Apuleuis.jpg
| caption = Late antique ceiling painting c. 330, possibly of Apuleius
| birth_date = {{circa|124}}
| birth_place = [[Madaurus]], [[Numidia (Roman province)|Numidia]]
| death_date = c. 170 – 190
| death_place = <!--Unknown-->
| occupation = [[Novelist]], writer, public speaker
| notable_works = ''[[The Golden Ass]]''
| school_tradition = [[Middle Platonism]]
}}
'''Apuleius''' ({{IPAc-en|ˌ|æ|p|j|ʊ|ˈ|l|iː|ə|s}} {{respell|APP|yuu|LEE|əs}}), also called '''Lucius Apuleius Madaurensis''' (c. 124 – after  170<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/30917/Lucius-Apuleius "Lucius Apuleius"]. ''[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]''.</ref>), was a [[Numidians|Numidian]] [[Latin]]-language prose writer, [[Platonist]] philosopher and rhetorician.<ref name="GTUApo">{{cite web |url=https://faculty.georgetown.edu/jod/apuleius/ |title=Apuleius, Apology |work=George Town University}}</ref> He was born in the [[Roman Empire|Roman]] [[Numidia (Roman province)|province of Numidia]], in the [[Berbers|Berber]] city of [[Madauros]], modern-day [[M'Daourouch]], [[Algeria]].<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |title=Berbers |quote=... The best known of them were the Roman author Apuleius, the Roman emperor Septimius Severus, and St. Augustine |encyclopedia=[[Encyclopedia Americana]] |publisher=Scholastic Library Publishing |year=2005 |volume=3 |page=569}}</ref> He studied Platonism in [[Athens]], travelled to [[Roman Italy|Italy]], [[Asia (Roman province)|Asia Minor]], and [[Egypt (Roman province)|Egypt]], and was an initiate in several cults or [[Greco-Roman mysteries|mysteries]]. The most famous incident in his life was when he was accused of using magic to gain the attentions (and fortune) of a wealthy widow. He declaimed and then distributed his own defense before the [[proconsul]] and a court of magistrates convened in [[Sabratha]], near Oea (modern [[Tripoli, Libya|Tripoli]], Libya). This is known as the ''Apologia''.

His most famous work is his [[bawdy]] [[picaresque novel]] the ''Metamorphoses'', otherwise known as ''[[The Golden Ass]]''. It is the only Latin novel that has survived in its entirety. It relates the adventures of its protagonist, Lucius, who experiments with magic and is accidentally turned into a [[donkey]]. Lucius goes through various adventures before he is turned back into a human being by the goddess [[Isis]].<ref name=":0">{{cite book |last1=Roman |first1=Luke |last2=Roman |first2=Monica |name-list-style=amp |year=2010 |title=Encyclopedia of Greek and Roman mythology |page=78 |publisher=Infobase |isbn=9781438126395 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tOgWfjNIxoMC |via=Google Books}}</ref>