The World of Tacitus' __Dialogus de Oratoribus__: Aesthetics and Empire in Ancient Rome

"Coming to terms with the rhetorical arts of antiquity necessarily illuminates our own ideas of public discourse and the habits of speech to which they have led. Tacitus wrote the Dialogus at a time (ca. 100 CE) when intense scrutiny of the history, the definitions, and the immediate relevance of public speech were all being challenged and refashioned by a host of vibrant intellects and ambitious practitioners. This book challenges the notion that Tacitus sought to explain the decline of oratory under the Principate. Rather, from examination of the dynamics of argument in the dialogue and the underlying literary traditions there emerges a sophisticated consideration of eloquentia in the Roman Empire. Tacitus emulates Cicero's legacy and challenges his position at the top of Rome's oratorical canon. He further shows that eloquentia is a means by which to compete with the power of the Principate"-- Provided by publisher. Cover 1 Half title 3 Title 5 Copyright 6 Dedication 7 Contents 9 Preface and acknowledgments 11 Abbreviations, texts, and translations 14 Introduction Rhetorical beginnings and rhetorical ends 17 1 The Dialogus and its contexts 33 2 Interpretations 68 3 Interstitial strategies and reading around the speeches 114 4 A world of eloquentia 140 5 An aetiology of contemporary eloquentia 181 6 From de Oratore to de Oratoribus 224 7 Literary criticism and history: Cicero, Horace, and Quintilian in the Dialogus 257 Conclusion 310 Appendix: Detailed outline of Tacitus’ Dialogus de Oratoribus 320 Bibliography 330 General index 354 Index locorum 358 Uses Tacitus' Dialogus to re-evaluate the role of eloquentia ('skilled speech') among imperial Rome's educated class. The rhetorical arts of antiquity illuminate our own ideas of public discourse and their consequent habits of speech. What is the point of rhetoric in an autocratic system? Does freedom necessarily improve public speech? Re-evaluates Tacitus'' dialogue about the limits and possibilities of public speech in the Roman Principate