Rhetorical Theory And Praxis In Plutarch

La rhetorique, aussi bien l'art oratoire comme tel que la science dont il est l'objet, renvoie aux dimensions les plus essentielles de l'existence humaine: la possibilite de l'intellingence, de la communication, de l'intercomprehension et d'une certaine elegance. A ce titre, cette discipline a fait l'objet, durant les dernieres decennies, d'une attention soutenue de la part de pratiquement toutes les sciences humaines. Le present recueil contient les contributions presentees au IVme Congres international de la Plutarch Society (Leuven, 3-6 juin 1996), consacre au theme "Rhetorical Theory and Praxis in Plutarch". Beaucoup d'ecirts de Plutarque sont marques par sa formation rhetorique; d'autres par contre, contiennent des elements de reflexion sur le role de l'ars bene dicendi, aussi bien dans la vie des puissants que dans celle de l'homme du commun. Ces Actes contiennent en outre des etudes qui eclairent le theme de la rhetorique a partir des points de vue philologique, psychologique, historique et sociologique et explicitent ainsi le climat spirituel dans lequel evoluait un Grec cultive a l'epoque romaine.

The volume puts into the spotlight overlaps and points of intersection between Plutarch and other writers of the imperial period. It contains twenty-eight contributions which adopt a comparative approach and put into sharper relief ongoing debates and shared concerns, revealing a complex topography of rearrangements and transfigurations of inherited topics, motifs, and ideas. Reading Plutarch alongside his contemporaries brings out distinctive features of his thought and uncovers peculiarities in his use of literary and rhetorical strategies, imagery, and philosophical concepts, thereby contributing to a better understanding of the empire’s culture in general, and Plutarch in particular.

The overall objective is to establish the context of Plutarch's work in the society and the historical circumstances for which it was written.

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.

The papers in this volume concentrate on political, philosophical, and literary aspects of Plutarch's presentation of statesmen and their activities, and on the aftermath of this Plutarchan heritage.

The papers in this volume concentrate on political, philosophical, and literary aspects of Plutarch's presentation of statesmen and their activities, and on the aftermath of this Plutarchan heritage.

In this short political work, Plutarch demonstrates that the philosopher should especially associate with powerful rulers in order to exert the greatest positive influence on his society and at the same time maximize his personal pleasure.

In the Parallel Lives Plutarch does not absolve his readers of the need for moral reflection by offering any sort of hard and fast rules for their moral judgement. Rather, he uses strategies to elicit readers’ active engagement with the act of judging. This book, drawing on the insights of recent narrative theories, especially narratology and reader-response criticism, examines Plutarch’s narrative techniques in the Parallel Lives of drawing his readers into the process of moral evaluation and exposing them to the complexities entailed in it. Subjects discussed include Plutarch’s prefatory projection of himself and his readers and the interaction between the two; Plutarch’s presentation of the mental and emotional workings of historical agents, which serves to re-enact the participants’ experience at the time and thus arouse empathy in the readers; Plutarch’s closural strategies and their profound effects on the readers’ moral inquiry; Plutarch’s principles of historical criticism in On the malice of Herodotus in relation to his narrative strategies in the Lives. Through illustrating Plutarch’s narrative technique, this book elucidates Plutarch’s praise-and-blame rhetoric in the Lives as well as his sensibility to the challenges inherent in recounting, reading about, and evaluating the lives of the great men of history.