Oratory and Political Career in the Late Roman Republic

Oratory And Political Career In The Late Roman Republic Is A Pioneering Investigation Into Political Life In The Late Roman Republic. It Explores The Nature And Extent To Which Roman Politicians Embraced Oratorical Performances As Part Of Their Political Career And How Such Performances Influenced The Careers Of Individual Orators Such As Gaius Gracchus, Pompeius Magnus, And Julius Caesar. Through Six Case Studies, This Book Presents A Complex And Multifaceted Picture Of How Roman Politicians Employed Oratory To Articulate Their Personal And Political Agendas, To Present Themselves To A Public Obsessed With Individual Achievement, And Ultimately To Promote Their Individual Careers. By Dealing Specifically With Orators Other Than Cicero, This Study Offers Much-needed Alternatives To Our Understanding Of Public Oratory In Rome. Moreover, The Assessment Of The Impact Of Public Speeches On The Development Of Political Careers Provides New Perspectives On The Hotly Debated Nature Of Republican Political Culture-- Machine Generated Contents Note: Introduction; Part I. The Role Of Oratory In Roman Politics: 1. Oratorical Settings And Career Possibilities; 2. Other Routes To Political Success; Part Ii. Themes And Oratorical Careers: 3. Tribunician Oratory And Family Inheritance: Gaius Gracchus' Political Career; 4. Politics Behind The Scenes: Pompeius' Oratory And Political Career; 5. The Oratorical Springboard: Caesar's Political Career; 6. The Oratory And Career Of Piso Caesoninus; 7. Powerful Profiling: Cato The Younger And The Impact Of Self-presentation; 8. Career-making In A Time Of Crisis: Marcus Antonius' Oratory; Conclusion: Towards A New Brutus; Appendix 1. Gaius Gracchus' Public Speeches; Appendix 2. Pompius' Public Speeches; Appendix 3. Caesar's Public Speeches; Appendix 4. Piso's Public Speeches; Appendix 5. Cato's Public Speeches. Henriette Van Der Blom, University Of Birmingham. Includes Bibliographical References (pages 328-362) And Index. Half-title Title page Copyright information Dedication Table of contents Preface List of abbreviations Frontispiece Introduction Part I The role of oratory in Roman politics 1 Oratorical settings and career possibilities The courts The contio The senate Oratorical settings and career moves 2 Other routes to political success Ancestry Wealth Patronage and networks Military career Intangible factors Factors for electoral and political success in context Part II Themes and oratorical careers 3 Tribunician oratory and family inheritance Stepping onto the political scene: Gaius’ early career Emulation and innovation: the first tribunate Oratorical competition and fading popularity: the second tribunate Gaius’ final speech Conclusion 4 Politics behind the scenes The returning general and the rhetoric of self-praise Oratory in the face of opposition The politics of ambiguity and abstention Conclusion 5 The oratorical springboard The young prosecutor A friend of the people Towards the consulship The choice of career The oratorical springboard 6 The oratory and career of Piso Caesoninus Piso’s early career: the power of ancestry The ambitious consul in Epicurean clothes The average orator? The moderate and moderating censor The senior consular after the Ides Conclusion 7 Powerful profiling Early career Establishing a career and persona The great filibusterer Fame and electoral defeat The approaching civil war and second electoral defeat Conclusion: Cato’s public profile 8 Career-making in a time of crisis From quaestor to consul Consul Proconsul Conclusion Conclusion Appendix 1: Gaius Gracchus’ public speeches Appendix 2: Pompeius’ public speeches Appendix 3: Caesar’s public speeches Appendix 4: Piso’s public speeches Appendix 5: Cato’s public speeches Appendix 6: Marcus Antonius’ public speeches Bibliography Index locorum Subject index "Oratory and Political Career in the Late Roman Republic is a pioneering investigation into political life in the late Roman Republic. It explores the nature and extent to which Roman politicians embraced oratorical performances as part of their political career and how such performances influenced the careers of individual orators such as Gaius Gracchus, Pompeius Magnus, and Julius Caesar. Through six case studies, this book presents a complex and multifaceted picture of how Roman politicians employed oratory to articulate their personal and political agendas, to present themselves to a public obsessed with individual achievement, and ultimately to promote their individual careers. By dealing specifically with orators other than Cicero, this study offers much-needed alternatives to our understanding of public oratory in Rome. Moreover, the assessment of the impact of public speeches on the development of political careers provides new perspectives on the hotly debated nature of republican political culture"-- Provided by publisher Contracub.: "Oratory and Political Career in the Late Roman Republic is a pioneering investigation into political life in the late Roman Republic. It explores the nature and extent to which Roman politicians embraced oratorical performances as part of their political career and how such performances influenced the careers of individual orators such as Gaius Gracchus, Pompeius Magnus, and Julius Caesar. Through six case studies, this book presents a complex and multifaceted picture of how Roman politicians employed oratory to articulate their personal and political agendas, to present themselves to a public obsessed with individual achievement, and ultimately to promote their individual careers. By dealing specifically with orators other than Cicero, this study offers much-needed alternatives to our understanding of public oratory in Rome. Moreover, the assessment of the impact of public speeches on the development of political careers provides new perspectives on the hotly debated nature of republican political culture." This book offers a new perspective on the role of oratory in Roman Republican politics through its unique focus on the oratorical performances of orators other than Cicero and the ways in which these performances shaped their political careers.