Krostenko (classics, U. of Chicago) explores charm, wit, elegance, and style in Roman literature of the late Republic by tracking the origins, development, and use of the terms that described them, which he calls "the language of social performance." His sociolinguistic approach is to describe the relationship between the words themselves and the ideological categories they expressed. Included in his analysis are the growth of elite aestheticism, the Latin rhetorical tradition, performance in Cicero and Catullus, and the rise of Octavian and the death of the language of social performance. Annotation copyrighted by Book News Inc., Portland, OR.

This is a study of the emergence, development, and florescence of a distinctly 'late Republican' socio-textual culture as recorded in the writings of this period's two most influential authors, Catullus and Cicero. It reveals a multi-faceted textual - rather than more traditionally defined 'literary' - world that both defines the intellectual life of the late Republic, and lays the foundations for those authors of the Principate and Empire who identified this period as their literary source and inspiration. By first questioning, and then rejecting, the traditional polarisation of Catullus and Cicero, and by broadening the scope of late Republican socio-literary studies to include intersections of language, social practice, and textual materiality, this book presents a fresh picture of both the socio-textual world of the late Republic and the primary authors through whom this world would gain renown.

Eight new essays, from a distinguished international cast, examine the techniques of Cicero's verbal aggression. Analysis includes political and forensic context but also Cicero's own formal theory of rhetoric and his debts to other genres, literary and dramatic.

In the current context of globalization, relocation of cultures, and rampant technologizing of communication, orality has gained renewed interest across disciplines in the humanities and the social sciences. Orality has shed its once negative image as primitive, non-literate, and exotic, and has grown into a major area of scientific interest and the focus of interdisciplinary research, including translation studies. As an important feature of human speech and communication, orality has featured prominently in studies related to pre-modernist traditions, modernist representations of human history, and postmodernist expressions of artistry such as in music, film, and other audiovisual media. Its wide appeal can be seen in the variety of this volume, in which contributors draw from a range of disciplines with orality as the point of intersection with translation studies. This book is unique in its exploration of orality and translation from an interdisciplinary perspective, and sets the groundwork for collaborative research among scholars across disciplines with an interest in the aesthetics and materiality of orality. This book was originally published as a special issue of Translation Studies.

Cicero's De Oratore is one of the masterpieces of Latin prose. A literary dialogue in the Greek tradition, it was written in 55 BCE in the midst of political turmoil at Rome, but reports a discussion 'concerning the (ideal) orator' that supposedly took place in 90 BCE, just before an earlier crisis. Cicero features eminent orators and statesmen of the past as participants in this discussion, presenting competing views on many topics. This edition of Book III is the first since 1893 to provide a Latin text and full introduction and commentary in English. It is intended to help advanced students and others interested in Roman literature to comprehend the grammar and appreciate the stylistic nuances of Cicero's Latin, to trace the historical, literary, and theoretical background of the topics addressed, and to interpret Book III in relation to the rest of De Oratore and to Cicero's other works.

Pro Marco Caelio is perhaps Cicero's best-loved speech and has long been regarded as one of the best surviving examples of Roman oratory. Speaking in defence of the young aristocrat Marcus Caelius Rufus on charges of political violence, Cicero scores his points with wit but also with searing invective directed at a supporter of the prosecution, Clodia Metelli, whom he represents as seeking vengeance as a lover spurned by his client. This new edition and detailed commentary offers advanced undergraduates and graduate students, as well as scholars, a detailed analysis of Cicero's rhetorical strategies and stylistic refinements and presents a systematic account of the background and significance of the speech, including in-depth explanations of Roman court proceedings.

As consul in 63 BC Cicero faced a conspiracy to overthrow the Roman state launched by the frustrated consular candidate Lucius Sergius Catilina. Cicero's handling of this crisis would shape foreverafter the way he defined himself and his statesmanship. The four speeches he delivered during the crisis show him at the height of his oratorical powers and political influence. Divided between deliberative speeches given in the senate (1 and 4) and informational speeches delivered before the general public (2 and 3), the Catilinarians illustrate Cicero's adroit handling of several distinct types of rhetoric. Beginning in antiquity, this corpus served as a basic text for generations of students but fell into neglect during the past half-century. This edition, which is aimed primarily at advanced undergraduates and graduate students, takes account of recently discovered papyrus evidence, recent studies of Cicero's language, style and rhetorical techniques, and the relevant historical background.