On Oratory & Orators - Primary Source Edition

by Marcus Tullius Cicero

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On Oratory & Orators

Marcus Tullius Cicero

Harper & bros., 1878

Genres: Philosophy

386 pages, Paperback

Published October 18, 2013

About the author

Born 3 January 106 BC, Arpinum, Italy
Died 7 December 43 BC (aged 63), Formia, Italy

Marcus Tullius Cicero was a Roman philosopher, statesman, lawyer, political theorist, and Roman constitutionalist. Cicero is widely considered one of Rome's greatest orators and prose stylists.

Alternate profiles:
Cicéron
Marco Tullio Cicerone
Cicerone

Note: All editions should have Marcus Tullius Cicero as primary author. Editions with another name on the cover should have that name added as secondary author.

Reviews

[Erick · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this more from a desire to read Cicero thoroughly than from an interest in the subject matter. In his On Oratory, Cicero lists the desirable qualities of an orator providing numerous examples from noteworthy orators. It often comes down to an innate ability to manipulate an audience through various rhetorical methods. It seems that the gullibility of a populace was understood very early on and was exploited. I have for a very long time been suspicious of a speaker who attempts to manipulate the emotions of his audience. Cicero acknowledges though that this is often the most desirable action because it is the most powerful (and I'd say lowest) common denominator; one could also add that it seems to be the method that yields the quickest results. By engaging the emotions of a crowd, one can stir them to action. Cicero does stipulate that an orator must also have the ability to read his audience because if one attempts to manipulate them too quickly, they can actually turn on you. I wouldn't accuse Cicero of being a sophist who merely sought to play to the crowd, but, at the same time, he understood that if a speaker had a good cause, it was sometimes necessary to get the crowd on board by appealing to their emotions. I would say that Cicero was less liable to abuse this ability; his causes were typically just.

The work here that is dedicated to Orators, which is titled Brutus, functions as an oratorical guide in the same way Diogenes Laertius' work was a philosophical guide. Cicero basically relates the strengths and weaknesses of various orators beginning with the Attic orators and continuing with the Roman orators of his day. Most of these names have been largely forgotten and very little if anything remains of their works - if they had any to begin with. I would say this work functions more as a history than anything else. I must admit that it didn't hold my attention that well.

This concludes my reading of Cicero for the time being. This is the 8th book I've read dedicated to Cicero and am fairly satisfied that I've read enough to be knowledgeable on the various aspects of his thought. I probably wouldn't recommend these two works to someone just getting into Cicero, but being that he was a notable politician (i.e. orator), these could be reasonably seen as essential works and that is why I read them. I'd give the book around 3-and-a-half stars.

[Erik C]

This is Cicero's manual for being an orator, but specifically the sort of Orator that captivates all of the public realm. So he refers as much to the character of the individual as to his speaking abilities.

[Hoyden · Rating 4 out of 5]

who can write this much? it's good stuff... but the man obviously loved himself.