To Know Thyself Through the Other: The Literary Convergences of Lucian and Justin

Abstract The paper engages in a comparative analysis of two prominent figures from the 2d century CE—Lucian of Samosata and Justin the Martyr. Lucian, the epideictic orator and social commentator, reintroduces the Olympians while rethinking paganism and engaging with Justin and the Apologists. Conversely, Justin, embodying the Christian pepaideumenos , places the new religion at the literary forefront and questions the stereotype of Christian simplicity. The paper argues that, in the context of reformative, paideutic Imperial culture, Lucian and Justin challenge the literary and religious status quo and engage the readers in a reconsideration of Christianity through the lens of the Second Sophistic and vice versa.