ANU Classical World Seminar

Daniel Tangri

28 April (Thursday) ANU Classical World Seminar, 5pm, G41, A.D.Hope Building

 

Rhetoric and Tactics in Isaeus VIII

Abstract

Little is known about Isaeus, other than the fact that he was one of the ten Attic orators and specialised in writing speeches about inheritance disputes. He gained a reputation in antiquity for chicanery and for devising speeches for the worse side. This reputation is in many ways deserved. Isaeus VIII, On the Estate of Ciron, has been recognised as a model of Isaeus speechwriting. It is also a model of how to make the best out of a bad case. This seminar will discuss the tactics Isaeus used to try to win his case and look at how he deployed his rhetorical art to support those tactics.

Dr. Daniel Tangri recently completed a PhD in the Classics Programme, School of Language Studies, ANU.