(Ebook) Rhetoric in Antiquity by Laurent Pernot ISBN 9780813214078, 0813214076

(Ebook) Rhetoric in Antiquity by Laurent Pernot ISBN 9780813214078, 0813214076

Originally published as La Rhétorique dans l'Antiquité (2000), this new English edition provides students with a valuable introduction to understanding the classical art of rhetoric and its place in ancient society and politics. Rhetoric formed an essential part of teaching and general culture. Today it gives indispensable keys to addressing current problems in literary theory, philosophy and aesthetics, communication, and political or legal debate. It bears a body of knowledge about reasoning and language, a vocabulary still in use, and transcends traditional barriers between disciplines and periods.
Written by a leading scholar of classical rhetoric, Laurent Pernot, the book offers a full description of ancient rhetoric in the Greco-Roman period, from Homer and classical Athens, through the Hellenistic World, Roman Republic, and Roman Empire, up to the advent of Christianity, explaining the evolutions, illuminating the main themes, and stressing the key moments and figures. The book contains a thesaurus giving a list and explanation of all the technical terms, many of which are still in use in contemporary language.
Laurent Pernot is Professor of Greek Language and Literature at the University of Strasbourg and President of the International Society for the History of Rhetoric. He is the author of numerous books and articles.
"Laurent Pernot's concise and authoritative account of rhetoric in Graeco-Roman antiquity appears now in an elegant English translation by William Higgins. This translation goes well beyond the original French edition and is more than a guide to what the Greeks and Romans thought about speech. Terminology and practice are given equal weight. Pernot has included detailed discussion of problematic issues in an excursus format that enriches his exposition without disrupting it. This is by far the best and the most timely introduction to classical rhetoric known to me."-G. W. Bowersock, Institute for Advanced Study (Princeton)