A revised Greek Text (the first in a century) and English translation (the first in any modern language) of the Art of Political Speech by a writer known as the Anonymous Seguerianus (ca. A.D. 200) and the Art of Rhetoric of Apsines of Gadara (ca. A.D. 230), with introduction, notes, and indices. These works provide evidence of how rhetoric was taught in Greek in the early centuries of the Roman Empire and show the continued development of an Aristotelian tradition before acceptance of the reorganization of the subject by Hermogenes. They complement each other in that the Anonymous was especially interested in debates about rhetorical theory, while Apsines' primary interest was in analysis of speeches of Demosthenes and other orators and in teaching declamation.

This volume contains the Greek text, textual apparatus, and first published English translation of two treatises on rhetoric, with introductory material and notes. Once attributed to Hermogenes of Tarsus, these treatises are now believed to be by unknown authors writing in the second or third century C.E. or later. The first treatise, entitled "On Invention," is a handbook for students providing formulas to aid them in the composition of declamations on assigned themes. The second treatise, "On the Method of Forcefulness," discusses prose style with special attention to figures of speech. Extensive notes interpret the often-difficult content and relate it to other writing on rhetoric. The Greek text is that of Hugo Rabe (1913). Paperback edition is available from the Society of Biblical Literature (www.sbl-site.org)

The works here edited and (for the first time) translated show the survival of an Aristotelian tradition in rhetoric before the revision of the subject by Hermogenes. The Anonymous' primary interest was in rhetorical theory, Apsines' in analysis of Attic oratory and in teaching declamation.

The instructional treatises of Menander Rhetor and the Ars Rhetorica, deriving from the schools of rhetoric that flourished in the Greek East from the 2nd through 4th centuries AD, provide a window into the literary culture, educational practices, and social concerns of these Greeks under Roman rule, in both public and private life. This volume contains three rhetorical treatises dating probably from the reign of Diocletian (AD 285-312) that provide instruction on how to compose epideictic (display) speeches for a wide variety of occasions both public and private. Two are attributed to one Menander Rhetor of Laodicea (in southwestern Turkey); the third, known as the Ars Rhetorica, incorrectly to the earlier historian and literary critic Dionysius of Halicarnassus. These treatises derive from the schools of rhetoric that flourished in the Roman Empire from the 2nd through 4th centuries AD in the Greek East. Although important examples of some genres of occasional prose were composed in the 5th and 4th centuries BC by Thucydides, Xenophon, Plato, and especially Isocrates, it was with the flowering of rhetorical prose during the so-called Second Sophistic in the second half of the 2nd century AD that more forms were developed as standard repertoire and became exemplary. Distinctly Hellenic and richly informed by the prose and poetry of a venerable past, these treatises are addressed to the budding orator contemplating a civic career, one who would speak for his city's interests to the Roman authorities and be an eloquent defender of its Greek culture and heritage. They provide a window into the literary culture, educational values and practices, and social concerns of these Greeks under Roman rule, in both public and private life, and considerably influenced later literature both pagan and Christian. This edition offers a fresh translation, ample annotation, and texts based on the best critical editions.

The instructional treatises of Menander Rhetor and the Ars Rhetorica, deriving from the schools of rhetoric that flourished in the Greek East from the 2nd through 4th centuries AD, provide a window into the literary culture, educational practices, and social concerns of these Greeks under Roman rule, in both public and private life. This volume contains three rhetorical treatises dating probably from the reign of Diocletian (AD 285–312) that provide instruction on how to compose epideictic (display) speeches for a wide variety of occasions both public and private. Two are attributed to one Menander Rhetor of Laodicea (in southwestern Turkey); the third, known as the Ars Rhetorica, incorrectly to the earlier historian and literary critic Dionysius of Halicarnassus. These treatises derive from the schools of rhetoric that flourished in the Roman Empire from the 2nd through 4th centuries AD in the Greek East. Although important examples of some genres of occasional prose were composed in the 5th and 4th centuries BC by Thucydides, Xenophon, Plato, and especially Isocrates, it was with the flowering of rhetorical prose during the so-called Second Sophistic in the second half of the 2nd century AD that more forms were developed as standard repertoire and became exemplary. Distinctly Hellenic and richly informed by the prose and poetry of a venerable past, these treatises are addressed to the budding orator contemplating a civic career, one who would speak for his city’s interests to the Roman authorities and be an eloquent defender of its Greek culture and heritage. They provide a window into the literary culture, educational values and practices, and social concerns of these Greeks under Roman rule, in both public and private life, and considerably influenced later literature both pagan and Christian. This edition offers a fresh translation, ample annotation, and texts based on the best critical editions.

The instructional treatises of Menander Rhetor and the Ars Rhetorica, deriving from the schools of rhetoric that flourished in the Greek East from the 2nd through 4th centuries AD, provide a window into the literary culture, educational practices, and social concerns of these Greeks under Roman rule, in both public and private life. This volume contains three rhetorical treatises dating probably from the reign of Diocletian (AD 285–312) that provide instruction on how to compose epideictic (display) speeches for a wide variety of occasions both public and private. Two are attributed to one Menander Rhetor of Laodicea (in southwestern Turkey); the third, known as the Ars Rhetorica, incorrectly to the earlier historian and literary critic Dionysius of Halicarnassus. These treatises derive from the schools of rhetoric that flourished in the Roman Empire from the 2nd through 4th centuries AD in the Greek East. Although important examples of some genres of occasional prose were composed in the 5th and 4th centuries BC by Thucydides, Xenophon, Plato, and especially Isocrates, it was with the flowering of rhetorical prose during the so-called Second Sophistic in the second half of the 2nd century AD that more forms were developed as standard repertoire and became exemplary. Distinctly Hellenic and richly informed by the prose and poetry of a venerable past, these treatises are addressed to the budding orator contemplating a civic career, one who would speak for his city’s interests to the Roman authorities and be an eloquent defender of its Greek culture and heritage. They provide a window into the literary culture, educational values and practices, and social concerns of these Greeks under Roman rule, in both public and private life, and considerably influenced later literature both pagan and Christian. This edition offers a fresh translation, ample annotation, and texts based on the best critical editions.

In The Genres of Rhetorical Speeches in Greek and Roman Antiquity, Cristina Pepe offers a complete overview of the concept of speech genre within ancient rhetoric. By analyzing sources dating from the 5th-4th century BC, the author proves that the well-known classification in three rhetorical genres (deliberative, judicial, epideictic), introduced by Aristotle, was rooted in the debate concerning the forms and functions of the art of persuasion in classical Athens. Genres play a leading role in Aristotle’s Rhetoric, and the analysis of considerable sections of the treatise shows profound links between the characterization of the rhetorical genres and Aristotelian philosophy as a whole. Finally, the volume explores the developments of the theory of genres in Hellenistic and Imperial rhetoric.