ii DECLARATION I, Gillian van der Heijden, declare that: The research reported in this dissertation, except where otherwise indicated, is my original research; This dissertation has not been submitted for any degree or examination at any other university; This dissertation does not contain other persons' data, pictures, graphs or other information, unless specifically acknowledged as being sourced from other persons; The dissertation does not contain other persons' writing, unless specifically

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... cknowledged as being sourced from other researchers. Where other written sources have been quoted, then: a) their words have been re-written but the general information attributed to them has been referenced; b) where their exact words have been used, their writing has been paragraphed and referenced; c) This dissertation/thesis does not contain text, graphics or tables copied and pasted from the Internet, unless specifically acknowledged, and the source being detailed in the dissertation/thesis and in the References sections. Signed: Gillian van der Heijden (Student Number 209541374) Professor J. L. Hilton iii ABSTRACT The film Agorá is better appreciated through a little knowledge of the rise of Christianity and its opposition to Paganism which professed ethical principles inherited from Greek mythology and acknowledged, seasonal rituals and wealth in land and livestock. Neoplatonism developed from the Greek philosophers, Socrates, Plato and Aristotle over a period of centuries. The learned proponents of Neoplatonic philosophies were viewed as elitists. Alexandria clung to Neoplatonic philosophy despite the edicts of Constantine the Great; a brief account of his influence and exertions to establish Christianity throughout the Roman Empire caused dissension among Christian bishops and split the Empire into two religious divisions, namely the Orthodox See of Byzantine and the Holy Roman Catholic Church of Rome. Chapter Two acknowledges that little information about Hypatia could be retrieved from the past but the discovery of the archived Letters of Synesius (played by Rupert Evans) redeemed her name from total obliteration; these letters, together with a selection of other authors are discussed. How the film Agorá was produced is examined in Chapter Three, in which media in film communicates and reflects social conflicts, local politics and power struggles of past and recent times, resulting in interaction with the Howard College Durban. Also published lecture of Dr Carey Fleiner, University of Winchester (2013) URL www.