An anthology of primary texts in translation, An Introduction to Classical Rhetoric offers an overview of the social, cultural, and intellectual factors that influenced the development and growth of rhetoric during the classical period. Uses primary source material to analyze rhetoric from the Sophists through St. Augustine Provides an in-depth introduction to the period, as well as introductions to each author and each selection Includes study guides to help students develop multiple perspectives on the material, stimulate critical thinking, and provide starting points for dialogue Highlights include Gorgias's Palamedes, Antiphon's Truth, Isocrates' Helen, and Plato's Protagoras Each selection is followed by suggested writing topics and a short list of suggested additional readings.
Lawyers, law students and their teachers all too frequently overlook the most comprehensive, adaptable and practical analysis of legal discourse ever devised: the classical art of rhetoric. Classical analysis of legal reasoning, methods and strategy is the foundation and source for most modern theories on the topic. Beginning with Aristotle's Rhetoric and culminating with Cicero's De Oratore and Quintilian's Institutio Oratoria, Greek and Roman rhetoricians created a clear, experience-based theoretical framework for analyzing legal discourse. This book is the first to systematically examine the connections between classical rhetoric and modern legal discourse. It traces the history of legal rhetoric from the classical period to the present day and shows how modern theorists have unknowingly benefited from the classical works. It also applies classical rhetorical principles to modern appellate briefs and judicial opinions to demonstrate how a greater familiarity with the classical sources can deepen our understanding of legal reasoning.
Since its original publication by UNC Press in 1980, this book has provided thousands of students with a concise introduction and guide to the history of the classical tradition in rhetoric, the ancient but ever vital art of persuasion. Now, George Kennedy offers a thoroughly revised and updated edition of Classical Rhetoric and Its Christian and Secular Tradition. From its development in ancient Greece and Rome, through its continuation and adaptation in Europe and America through the Middle Ages and Renaissance, to its enduring significance in the twentieth century, he traces the theory and practice of classical rhetoric through history. At each stage of the way, he demonstrates how new societies modified classical rhetoric to fit their needs. For this edition, Kennedy has updated the text and the bibliography to incorporate new scholarship; added sections relating to women orators and rhetoricians throughout history; and enlarged the discussion of rhetoric in America, Germany, and Spain. He has also included more information about historical and intellectual contexts to assist the reader in understanding the tradition of classical rhetoric.
George Kennedy's three volumes on classical rhetoric have long been regarded as authoritative treatments of the subject. This new volume, an extensive revision and abridgment of The Art of Persuasion in Greece, The Art of Rhetoric in the Roman World, and Greek Rhetoric under Christian Emperors, provides a comprehensive history of classical rhetoric, one that is sure to become a standard for its time. Kennedy begins by identifying the rhetorical features of early Greek literature that anticipated the formulation of "metarhetoric," or a theory of rhetoric, in the fifth and fourth centuries b.c.e. and then traces the development of that theory through the Greco-Roman period. He gives an account of the teaching of literary and oral composition in schools, and of Greek and Latin oratory as the primary rhetorical genre. He also discusses the overlapping disciplines of ancient philosophy and religion and their interaction with rhetoric. The result is a broad and engaging history of classical rhetoric that will prove especially useful for students and for others who want an overview of classical rhetoric in condensed form.
Ward Farnsworth details the timeless principles of rhetoric from Ancient Greece to the present day, drawing on examples in the English language of consummate masters of prose, such as Lincoln, Churchill, Dickens, Melville, and Burke.
Back in print after 17 years, this is a concise history of rhetoric as it relates to structure, genre, and style, with special reference to English literature and literary criticism from Ancient Greece to the end of the 18th century. The core of the book is a quite original argument that the figures of rhetoric were not mere mechanical devices, were not, as many believed, a "nuisance, a quite sterile appendage to rhetoric to which (unaccountably) teachers, pupils, and writers all over the world devoted much labor for over 2,000 years." Rather, Vickers demonstrates, rhetoric was a stylized representation of language and human feelings. Vickers supplements his argument through analyses of the rhetorical and emotional structure of four Renaissance poems. He also defines 16 of the most common figures of rhetoric, citing examples from the classics, the Bible, and major English poets from Chaucer to Pope.
Rhetoric -- the theory of oral discourse -- affected and indeed pervaded all aspects of classical thought. Bearing the stamp of its impact were the Homeric hymns, the Iliad and the Odyssey, Aeschylus' Eumenides, the great dramatic tragedies, the elegiac and lyric poetry, and the literature of the Romans, often formed in the Greek image. The rhetorical notion of probability had direct implications for the classical philosopher and mathematician as it does today. Departments of speech, English, philosophy and classics provide the key centers of interest in the new and the classical rhetorics. Despite the considerable enthusiasm for the study of rhetoric, no single work provides large selections of primary materials written by the classical rhetoricians themselves. Until now, only secondary sources containing tiny excerpts, or entire and expensive translations of the ancient rhetorical writings were available. This large anthology of primary readings of the classical rhetoricians in translation fills this large gap. The continuity and coherence of ancient rhetorical traditions is emphasized by organizing large excerpts into the topical divisions that later classical writers agreed upon. The first unit of this anthology sets forth major issues in the definition and scope of rhetoric, and its appropriate place among other modes of thought and discourse. Parts 2 through 5 are organized according to the traditional canons of oratory -- invention, disposition, style, memory, and delivery. In organizing the readings this way, the editors represent both the philosophical and theoretical issues in rhetoric and its pragmatic functions as a craft for making effective discourse. Selecting excerpts that illustrate the major conflicts within the unfolding tradition enables a sampling of not only the major points of view, but also the arguments supporting them. This volume includes selections not only from writings of the standard classical rhetoricians but also from less typical works which have special value. The editors have utilized the best accessible translations while remaining absolutely faithful to their texts.
Originally published as La Rhétorique dans l'Antiquité (2000), this new English edition provides students with a valuable introduction to understanding the classical art of rhetoric and its place in ancient society and politics
Classical rhetoric is one of the earliest versions of what is today known as media studies. It was absolutely crucial to life in the ancient world, whether in the courtroom, the legislature, or on ceremonial occasions, and was described as either the art of the persuasion or the art of speaking well. This anthology brings together all the most important ancient writings on rhetoric, including works by Cicero, Aristotle, Quintilian and Philostratus. Ranging across such themes as memory, persuasion, delivery and style, it provides a fascinating introduction to classical rhetoric and will be an invaluable sourcebook for students of the ancient world.
