A fundamental reappraisal of Plutarch’s attitude towards rhetoric.
Plutarch was not only a skilled writer, but also lived during the Second Sophistic, a period of cultural renaissance. This book offers new insights into Plutarch’s seemingly moderate attitude towards rhetoric. The hypothesis explored in this study introduces, for the first time, the broader literary and cultural contexts that influenced and restricted the scope of Plutarch’s message. When these contexts are considered, a new perspective emerges that differs from that found in earlier studies. It paints a picture of a philosopher who may not regard rhetoric as a lesser means of persuasion, but who faces challenges in openly articulating this stance in his public discourse.
Ebook available in Open Access.
This publication is GPRC-labeled (Guaranteed Peer-Reviewed Content).
Acknowledgements
Note to the Reader
Introduction
1. Plutarch and Rhetoric
2. A ‘conversion’ from rhetoric to philosophy?
3. The texts at issue and related problems
4. The analytical scope of the present study
Teaching and Persuasion
1. Introduction
2. Philosophical teaching: its content and political dimension
3. Persuasion in the service of teaching
4. Examples of individuals who persuade and teach
5. Parrhesia and trust
6. Conclusion
Character and Speech
1. Introduction
2. Character as a means of persuasion
3. The subsidiary role of rhetoric
4. Conclusion
Rhetoric and Beneficence
1. Introduction
2. Other means of exercising power
3. Rhetoric in place of beneficence
4. Why rhetoric?
5. Conclusion
The Philosopher and the Sophists
1. Introduction
2. The critique of the sophists
3. The direct confrontation in the lecture hall
4. The indirect confrontation in the political arena
5. The reception of the confrontation in subsequent generations
6. Conclusion
Conclusion
Bibliography
Index Locorum
Index Nominum et Rerum
Theofanis Tsiampokalos
Theofanis Tsiampokalos is research associate in classics at Trier University.
It will undoubtedly become the most widely read and influential monograph on Plutarch and rhetoric in print, and has much to say to scholars of the so-called Second Sophistic as well as to everyone interested in the position of rhetoric in antiquity and its relationship with other branches of knowledge, such as philosophy. – Chrysanthos S. Chrysanthou, Assistant Professor of Ancient Greek, University of Cyprus
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