James M. May
- Published in print:
- 1988
- Published Online:
- May 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780807817599
- eISBN:
- 9781469616322
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University of North Carolina Press
- DOI:
- 10.5149/northcarolina/9781469616322.001.0001
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, Archaeology: Classical
By its very nature, the art of oratory involves character. Verbal persuasion entails the presentation of a persona by the speaker that affects an audience for good or ill. This book explores the role ...
More
By its very nature, the art of oratory involves character. Verbal persuasion entails the presentation of a persona by the speaker that affects an audience for good or ill. This book explores the role and extent of Cicero's use of ethos and demonstrates its persuasive effect. The book discusses the importance of ethos, not just in classical rhetorical theory but also in the social, political, and judicial milieu of ancient Rome, and then applies his insights to the oratory of Cicero. Ciceronian ethos was a complex blend of Roman tradition, Cicero's own personality, and selected features of Greek and Roman oratory. More than any other ancient literary genre, oratory dealt with constantly changing circumstances, with a wide variety of rhetorical challenges. An orator's success or failure, as well as the artistic quality of his orations, was largely the direct result of responses to these circumstances and challenges. Acutely aware of his audience and its cultural heritage and steeped in the rhetorical traditions of his predecessors, Cicero employed rhetorical ethos with uncanny success. The book analyzes individual speeches from four different periods of Cicero's career, tracing changes in the way Cicero depicted character, both his own and others', as a source of persuasion—changes intimately connected with the vicissitudes of Cicero's career and personal life. It shows that ethos played a major role in almost every Ciceronian speech, that Cicero's audiences were conditioned by common beliefs about character, and finally, that Cicero's rhetorical ethos became a major source for persuasion in his oratory.Less
By its very nature, the art of oratory involves character. Verbal persuasion entails the presentation of a persona by the speaker that affects an audience for good or ill. This book explores the role and extent of Cicero's use of ethos and demonstrates its persuasive effect. The book discusses the importance of ethos, not just in classical rhetorical theory but also in the social, political, and judicial milieu of ancient Rome, and then applies his insights to the oratory of Cicero. Ciceronian ethos was a complex blend of Roman tradition, Cicero's own personality, and selected features of Greek and Roman oratory. More than any other ancient literary genre, oratory dealt with constantly changing circumstances, with a wide variety of rhetorical challenges. An orator's success or failure, as well as the artistic quality of his orations, was largely the direct result of responses to these circumstances and challenges. Acutely aware of his audience and its cultural heritage and steeped in the rhetorical traditions of his predecessors, Cicero employed rhetorical ethos with uncanny success. The book analyzes individual speeches from four different periods of Cicero's career, tracing changes in the way Cicero depicted character, both his own and others', as a source of persuasion—changes intimately connected with the vicissitudes of Cicero's career and personal life. It shows that ethos played a major role in almost every Ciceronian speech, that Cicero's audiences were conditioned by common beliefs about character, and finally, that Cicero's rhetorical ethos became a major source for persuasion in his oratory.
Christa Gray, Andrea Balbo, Richard M. A. Marshall, and Catherine E. W. Steel
- Published in print:
- 2018
- Published Online:
- March 2018
- ISBN:
- 9780198788201
- eISBN:
- 9780191830167
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780198788201.003.0001
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, Prose and Writers: Classical, Early, and Medieval, European History: BCE to 500CE
The introduction sets out the methodological issues that confront the study of fragments and testimonia pertaining to Republican oratory. It goes on to provide an overview of the early history of the ...
More
The introduction sets out the methodological issues that confront the study of fragments and testimonia pertaining to Republican oratory. It goes on to provide an overview of the early history of the transmission and reception of this evidence, with a particular focus on the way subsequent traditions may distort our understanding of the evidence. Following these surveys, an overview of the contents of the whole volume is provided. Within this overview, attention is also drawn to the thematic links that can be drawn between the individual chapters and the questions raised in each of the four sections of the collection.Less
The introduction sets out the methodological issues that confront the study of fragments and testimonia pertaining to Republican oratory. It goes on to provide an overview of the early history of the transmission and reception of this evidence, with a particular focus on the way subsequent traditions may distort our understanding of the evidence. Following these surveys, an overview of the contents of the whole volume is provided. Within this overview, attention is also drawn to the thematic links that can be drawn between the individual chapters and the questions raised in each of the four sections of the collection.
Christa Gray, Andrea Balbo, Richard M. A. Marshall, and Catherine E. W. Steel (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2018
- Published Online:
- March 2018
- ISBN:
- 9780198788201
- eISBN:
- 9780191830167
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780198788201.001.0001
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, Prose and Writers: Classical, Early, and Medieval, European History: BCE to 500CE
This collection of essays explores the oratory of the Roman Republic as practised by everyone apart from Cicero. It addresses the problems arising from the partial and often unreliable evidence for ...
More
This collection of essays explores the oratory of the Roman Republic as practised by everyone apart from Cicero. It addresses the problems arising from the partial and often unreliable evidence for these other Roman orators and investigates new ways of interpreting this evidence. The contributors seek to contextualize these fragments and testimonia, both in their original settings and over the course of their subsequent transmission, to explore a range of questions: what was said in the Roman Republic, and what counted as public speech or ‘oratory’ at Rome? Who did the speaking, and to what extent can we identify anonymous speakers? What were the formal and informal scenarios in which public speech took place? What non-verbal signals should be considered together with the speakers’ words? How reliable and selective is our evidence? How does the development of rhetoric as a discipline affect the reception and transmission of public speech? The resulting discussions reshape our understanding of public speech in the Roman Republic and enable us to move the study of Republican oratory decisively beyond Cicero.Less
This collection of essays explores the oratory of the Roman Republic as practised by everyone apart from Cicero. It addresses the problems arising from the partial and often unreliable evidence for these other Roman orators and investigates new ways of interpreting this evidence. The contributors seek to contextualize these fragments and testimonia, both in their original settings and over the course of their subsequent transmission, to explore a range of questions: what was said in the Roman Republic, and what counted as public speech or ‘oratory’ at Rome? Who did the speaking, and to what extent can we identify anonymous speakers? What were the formal and informal scenarios in which public speech took place? What non-verbal signals should be considered together with the speakers’ words? How reliable and selective is our evidence? How does the development of rhetoric as a discipline affect the reception and transmission of public speech? The resulting discussions reshape our understanding of public speech in the Roman Republic and enable us to move the study of Republican oratory decisively beyond Cicero.
Michael Winterbottom
Antonio Stramaglia, Francesca Romana Nocchi, and Giuseppe Russo (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- May 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780198836056
- eISBN:
- 9780191873423
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780198836056.003.0001
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, Literary Studies: Classical, Early, and Medieval, Prose and Writers: Classical, Early, and Medieval
This paper was first published in 1964. It argues that Quintilian’s emphasis on the need for high moral standards in oratory, as seen especially in his adoption of the Elder Cato’s definition of the ...
More
This paper was first published in 1964. It argues that Quintilian’s emphasis on the need for high moral standards in oratory, as seen especially in his adoption of the Elder Cato’s definition of the orator as a good man skilled in speaking, is best understood against the background of the oratory of his own time. That oratory is vividly portrayed in Tacitus, especially in the Dialogus, which was written at this period. Aper, a character in the dialogue, defends modern oratory, and its tendency to neglect rhetorical doctrine in favour of brilliant and even violent expression. The paper discusses the informers who made their names and fortunes by means of their eloquence, and shows how Quintilian discreetly evokes and deplores them.Less
This paper was first published in 1964. It argues that Quintilian’s emphasis on the need for high moral standards in oratory, as seen especially in his adoption of the Elder Cato’s definition of the orator as a good man skilled in speaking, is best understood against the background of the oratory of his own time. That oratory is vividly portrayed in Tacitus, especially in the Dialogus, which was written at this period. Aper, a character in the dialogue, defends modern oratory, and its tendency to neglect rhetorical doctrine in favour of brilliant and even violent expression. The paper discusses the informers who made their names and fortunes by means of their eloquence, and shows how Quintilian discreetly evokes and deplores them.
