In the article Vibia Perpetua's Diary: A Women's Writing in A Roman Text of Its Own" written by Melissa C. Perez, and "Perpetua" by Joyce Salisbury, have distinct ways of making their point, both succeed in conveying the message of "Saint Perpetua, who was martyred in Carthage in 203 AD, is known for the diary she kept while imprisoned by the Romans" (Salisbury). Both Perez and Salisbury give an overview of Perpetua's story. Salisbury's article is a brief overview of Perpetua's main point. Because, Perez's article gets all the meat behind it "challenges this convention as it concerns the social history of Rome through the exploration of a source written by a woman" in a period unpopular for both women and Christianity. Both articles open with a brief overview of how in the city of Carthage we meet a Roman woman named Vibia Perpetua and her accounts of events are the earliest surviving Christian records of the martyrs. This document consists of two unknown narrators, as well as Perpetua's personal account and, finally, the section in which she describes the deaths of her and her fellow martyrs. What is a martyr you may ask? A martyr is someone who is willing to suffer or die for their religious beliefs. Perpetua was a Roman citizen of Carthage; she was a 20-year-old married woman with a newborn baby. This document was written in the third century during the persecution of Christians. Christianity gradually spread among Roman citizens and since it was a monotheistic religion they did not believe in sacrifices to the gods and/or the emperor. Roman Emperor Septimius Severus decided to “stop the spread of Judaism and Christianity ca. 202, then passed a law prohibiting anyone from converting to...... middle of paper ......and Perez I feel they have little prejudice against the diaries of Vibia Perpetua. Both articles use evidence to support the discussion on the Perpetua topic with facts from the primary source, academic journals and professors. All in all, Christians had a hard time especially for a newly converted Christian. Being able to practice your religion without being mistreated has come a long way. From having to give up everything you loved: family, homeland, friends, only to be able to die because martyrdom really meant a lot to them. For all the Christians who died in the arena they represented a stepping stone for all those future Christians who would follow in their footsteps. Having this first-hand account of what Perpetua and her fellow martyrs had to endure has allowed current Christians of that era to feel a sense of pride and joy knowing that their deaths had not been in vain.