Desperate Housewives in the Protevangelium of James

Abstract

The discourse literature of the Protevangelium of James, a well-known text in early Egyptian Christianity, provides a typological interpretation that identifies Anna, the mother of Mary, with Hanna, the mother of Samuel. This typological interpretation minimizes Anna’s role to “bearer” of a special child, and the retelling of the narrative adheres strictly to the stereotypical narrative elements of a birth prophecy story as found in the Jewish books of the Tanakh, Septuagint, Old Testament Pseudepigrapha, writings of Josephus and the Christian canonical texts. However, this typological interpretation minimizes the expert storytelling of the Protevangelium, which presents a formidable woman, whose actions are pivotal in the development of the story. In particular, the often-overlooked interaction between the female characters of Anna and her servant Juthine reveals astute knowledge of women’s lives in Late Antiquity providing insight into the audience for whom the text was written.