Book
Philosophy, Rhetoric, and Sophistry in the High Roman Empire
Maximus of Tyre and Twelve Other Intellectuals
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Jeroen Lauwers
Languages:
English, Multiple languages
Published/Copyright:
2015
Purchasable on brill.com
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About this book
How is it possible that modern scholars have labelled Maximus of Tyre, a second-century CE performer of philosophical orations, as a sophist or a ‘half-philosopher’, while his own self-presentation is that of a genuine philosopher? If we take Maximus’ claim to philosophical authority seriously, his case can deepen our understanding of the dynamic nature of Imperial philosophy. Through a discursive analysis of twelve Imperial intellectuals alongside Maximus’ dialexeis, the author proposes an interpretative framework to assess the purpose behind the representation of philosophy, rhetoric, and sophistry in Maximus’ oeuvre. This is thus as yet the first book-length attempt at situating the historical communication process implicit in the surviving Maximean texts in the concurrent context of the Imperial intellectual world.
Author / Editor information
Jeroen Lauwers, Ph.D. (2012), University of Leuven, is a postdoctoral scholar of Classics and Literary Studies at that university. His interests include Imperial Greek literature, ancient literary theory and criticism, and receptions of the classical world.
Topics
Publishing information
Pages and Images/Illustrations in book
eBook published on:
September 7, 2015
eBook ISBN:
9789004301535
Pages and Images/Illustrations in book
Main content:
332
eBook ISBN:
9789004301535
Keywords for this book
Second Sophistic; Plutarch; Epictetus; Philostratus; Favorinus; Galen; Empiricus; Apuleius; Dio; Aristides; Arrian; Marcus; Aurelius; Lucian
Audience(s) for this book
All interested in the intellectual life of Imperial Rome, ancient philosophy (especially the reception of Plato), ancient theology, and ancient rhetoric (especially the so-called Second Sophistic).
