Abstract

The aim of this contribution is to highlight both the ethical-practical and aesthetic aspects implicit in ascetic practices, seeking by this operation to expand the concept of the «aesthetics of existence» introduced by Michel Foucault. In particular, this objective is pursued by applying the theoretical tools that have been developed over the last two decades in the debate on the agency of images to the various ascetic practices examined (with a focus on those with particular performative implications typical of the ancient and late antique world).