Oratory

Rhetorical speechmaking and oratory peaked in Classical Athens, and Greeks became the leading practitioners and teachers of oratory.

Date: From the eighth century b. c.e.

Category: Oratory and rhetoric

Summary From the earliest historical times in Greece, formal speechmaking was an important skill for public life. Examples can be found in Homer’s Iliad (c. 750 b. c.e.; English translation, 1611) and Odyssey (c. 725 b. c.e.; English translation, 1614). Even a warrior such as Achilles is praised not only as a doer of deeds but also as a speaker of words. Numerous speeches are made in these works, including in a court scene in which the plaintiff and defendant are pleading their sides. Odysseus is a successful hero in large part through his clever speeches.

Formal public speaking evolved into the more formalized profession of oratory during the Classical period in response to political developments, especially experimentation with democratic forms of government. Legend holds that formal training in oratory, or rhetoric, began in the fifth century b. c.e. on the island of Sicily. Early speakers such as Gorgias of Leontini brought a new style and sophistication to public speaking. When these developments reached Athens, Classical oratory blossomed.

The democracy in Athens was fertile ground for the development of rhetoric and oratory. Politicians had to be strong orators in order to persuade the thousands of citizens gathered for an assembly (deliberative oratory). Pericles (c. 495-429 b. c.e.) was famous for his ability to guide the democracy with his powerful oratory. A leading citizen had to speak ably at a trial (forensic oratory), since prosecution and defense both hinged on persuading large juries. In addition, numerous public events provided occasions for speakers to demonstrate their oratorical prowess (epideictic oratory). Teaching rhetoric and oratorical techniques became increasingly important. Even in a court case, speakers had to deliver their own speeches, but they could hire speechwriters (logographoi). Antiphon (c. 480-411

Demosthenes was a weH-known orator of ancient Greece.

B. c.e.) is the earliest Athenian orator whose written speeches survive. In the fourth century b. c.e., the industry boomed; this period would later be reckoned a golden age of Greek oratory. From this period, the canonical ten Greek orators were selected, beginning with Antiphon, then Andocides, Lysias, Isocrates, Isaeus, Demosthenes, Aeschines, Hyperides, Lycurgus, and Dinarchus. Nearly 150 speeches survive from this Classical period of Athenian oratory.

Significance After the fall of the democracy in Athens in 322 b. c.e., Greek oratory waned, but by this point sophisticated and detailed methods were in place for training orators. Greek rhetores became the unchallenged master teachers of rhetoric and oratory around the Mediterranean. Greek orators themselves would again enjoy prominence in the Second Sophistic period (c. 60-230 c. e.), when flashy speakers could become celebrities. As the pagan Roman world gave way to medieval Christianity, rhetoric continued to be in the core of education, and classical Greek rhetoric remains the starting point for speech communication studies in the present day.

Further Reading

Ballif, Michelle, and Michael G. Moran, eds. Classical Rhetorics and Rhetoricians: Critical Studies and Sources. Westport, Conn.: Praeger, 2005.

Habinek, Thomas. Ancient Rhetoric and Oratory. Malden, Mass.: Blackwell, 2005.

The Oratory of Classical Greece. 9 vols. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1998-2005.

Wilfred E. Major

See also: Aeschines; Andocides; Antiphon; Demosthenes; Gorgias; Isocrates; Lycurgus of Sparta; Lysias; Pericles.