Form and Function in Roman Oratory

This book explores the interplay of form and function in both real and fictional oratory at Rome.

Leading scholars in the field of Latin prose explore Roman oratory through an analysis of the interplay of form and function. They examine both the speeches of Cicero, Pliny and Apuleius, and those found in philosophical writing and the histories of Caesar, Sallust, Livy and Tacitus.In this book Roman oratory is explored from the perspective of form and function. Leading scholars in the field of Latin prose consider not only the speeches of Cicero, Pliny, Apuleius and the later panegyrists, but also those found in Roman philosophical writing, and in the histories of Caesar, Sallust, Livy and Tacitus. In each case, analysis of the interplay of form and function takes us to the heart of the process by which the author's aims are realised. The book also considers the functions of texts within speeches, the functions of not speaking and the representation of oratorical 'form' in Roman sculpture. An original and wide-ranging study, Form and Function in Roman Oratory will appeal to scholars and students with interests in Roman oratory, historiography, philosophy and art.