5.113), and it was partly for Phaedrus sake that he intervened with C. Memmius to prevent him from demolishing Epicurus house in Athens (Fam. Cokun notes that the second part of Cicero's pleading is integral to the defense and should not be regarded as an indication that Archias' legal case was weak. 1.16.15), and will obviously have stopped short of Pompeys appointment. Throughout the speech Cicero wishes to show that Archias is someone who is useful to society. But while the Roman people are honoured, Lucullus too is given a full share of the glory ( 21): Nostra semper feretur et praedicabitur L. Lucullo dimicante, cum interfectis ducibus depressa hostium classis est, incredibilis apud Tenedum pugna illa navalis, nostra sunt tropaea, nostra monumenta, nostri triumphi. Comments are moderated. Anth. This is a convenient idea for Cicero because it will allow him, later in the speech, to widen his discussion to include other disciplines of more obvious practicality or value. This chapter reviews the historical circumstances of Archias' trial, and then discusses the speech itself and some of the issues it raises, especially that of why the encomium of literature is included, and how it contributes to the defence. Archias had become eligible for Roman citizenship under the Lex Iulia de Civitate Latinis Danda, passed in 90 BC, and the Lex Plautia Papiria de Civitate Sociis Danda, passed in 89 BC. There could therefore be as many as six Archiases, and we have no way of knowing for certain which of the epigrams in the Greek Anthology are the work of our poet.5 Cicero tells us that Archias travelled to southern Italy (he was probably doing a round of festivals),6 and was granted honorary citizenship by some of the cities he visited. This sentence, with its elegant series of carefully balanced clauses, immediately raises the question of the style of the speech: with the exception, naturally, of the narratio, the speech is pitched at a higher stylistic level than is normal in Cicero. The commentary likewise alerts students to some hallmarks of Ciceros Latin (e.g. Expressions of thanks or praise should be sent directly to the reviewer, using the email address in the review. Some time later, Archias accompanied M. Lucullus on a visit to Sicily, and on their return journey Lucullus arranged for him to be granted honorary citizenship at Heraclea in Lucania. There is an exordium ( 14a), then a narratio ( 4b7) outlining Archias career and the process by which he became a Roman citizen. Or perhaps Archias had simply grown tired of praising the Romans, and felt confident that Cicero would forgive him if he failed to oblige. Cicero and his Italian Clients in the Forensic Speeches, The Rhetoric of Character in the Roman Courts, Audience Expectations, Invective, and Proof. The extent of upper-class Roman prejudice regarding a mans place of origin is revealed by the fact that, in the year before Archias trial, Cicero himself had been described in the Senate by one patrician as animmigrant citizen (inquilinus civis, Sal. This plea for Archias may man of Rome, a man of high birth, a sol- be divided thus: dier of no mean capacity, and an orator of mi I. Cicero's reasons for undertaking the unusual success. Stripped to its essentials, the argument runs as follows:If I have any talent, experience in speaking, or technical skill in oratory derived from training in the liberal arts, then Archias has a strong claim on it. A number of epigrams in the Greek Anthology appear under the name of Archias. Porter (cited n. 14) 140 f.; MacKendrick (cited n. 16) 110 f. Cf. The two examples he mentions here are Alexander the Great and Pompey the Great ( 24); the comparison is highly complimentary to the latter. Plut. First, whatever the jurors private views on poetry and culture, it is nevertheless flattering for them to be treated as intellectuals, as a select group of people who are well educated and superior to the common herd (cf. At Rome, Archias was accepted into the household of the Luculli. How many finely executed portraits of the most valiant men have the Greek and Latin writers left us, and not only for our contemplation but for our emulation! Please subscribe or login. 41.3, 42.4), and in politics they shared the same conservative outlook. The prosecution laid out four accusations in its case against Archias: Because of Archias' close association with Lucullus, the case was probably a political attack directed at the politician by one of his many enemies. You will ask me, Gratius, why I am so enthusiastic about this man. This paper examines Cicero's Pro Archia Poeta Oratio and the author's implicit and explicit views on how Roman cultural identity is constructed. They are also well matched to the introductions brief yet informative discussion, which itself divides into three parts: Ciceros political and forensic activities (mostly covering events through 62 BCE); Archias and the legal background of the case; and an outline and summary of the speech following the traditional five-part schema: exordium, narratio, refutatio, confirmatio, peroratio. Study with Quizlet and memorize flashcards containing terms like Lucullus, indeed, and Drusus and Octavius, and Cato and the whole house of Hortensii, since he held them bound by close social ties, he was treated by them with the highest of honors; for not only did everyone cultivate his friendship who devoted to hear and to take in anything they did, but even those who only pretended.", It is . With typical rhetorical flourishes, Cicero asks the "cultivated audience and enlightened jury" 50 to allow this defense speech. ), and Cicero had set aside time during it to defend a relation of Lucullus (Att. Quint. Rome should therefore be grateful that Archias already belongs to her (the argument concludes in the same way as the argument from Homer at 19). I focus here on its usefulness to an introductory/intermediate-level university class, drawing partly upon my experience with C.s first edition to teach a third-semester Latin Prose course at Yale University in the Fall of 2003 to a group of 20 undergraduate and graduate students. 81). First there is the genuine sense of gratitude he felt towards his old teacher ( 1), a factor which should not be cynically denied. The arguments that follow continue the close connection of poetry with military affairs. Such a characterization could not have been employed by Cicero unless the jury already held, or at least were disposed to hold, a similar view themselves. Name: Reading guide for Cicero's Speech in Defense of the Poet Archias (on Blackboard) Note: The defendant's birth name is Archias (a Greek name), Cicero refers to him as Aulus Licinius, the name he took once he moved to Italy and attained Roman citizenship. If Archias accuser is indeed connected with Pompey, as seems likely, then the reference has added point: in seeking to deprive Lucullus man of his citizenship, Grattius is ignoring the precedent set by his own patron. Literature tells and celebrates achievements. Here, however, Cicero does need to explain briefly why Archias was never included in a census: that of 89 was abandoned, and when censuses were held in 86 and 70 he was each time accompanying L. Lucullus on campaign in the East. But Ciceros technique is not simply one of flattery. Cicero's defense of Archias follows a two-pronged argument. Cicero now moves on to the confirmatio, which, because of the simplicity of the case, is almost as brief as the narratio. In reality Archias, if he ever wore a toga at all, which is doubtful, would not have done so until 89, by which time he had been settled in Rome for thirteen years. At this point there is nothing further that Cicero can say that is directly relevant to the legal issue, and so the digressio ( 1230), consisting of the encomium of literature, intervenes. Max. The third reason for the high stylistic level may be stated more briefly. A Pew Research Center survey conducted in 2017 found similar patterns in firearm owners' stated reasons for owning a gun.. Around half of Americans (48%) see gun violence as a very big problem in the country today, according to a Pew Research Center survey conducted in April 2021. (Cic. When he does choose to discuss an intellectual subject at length, in Pro Murena, he begins, as we have seen, by flattering the jury on their erudition, and then proceeds to describe the Stoic school of philosophy in a way which first of all assumes no prior knowledge whatsoever, not even the name of the founder, and secondly serves merely to reinforce, for his own ends, the jurys anti-intellectual prejudices.21 Cicero was to admit, many years later, that the jury that heard Murenas case were an ignorant lot (Fin. Archias's Roman citizenship has been called into question, and through an artful display of oratory and rhetoric, Cicero reconstructs the reality of Archias's life and contributions to provide proof of his worth as a citizen. 115; Tusc. Let us turn now to the digressio itself The structure of this passage is difficult to analyse. Such language does not occur often in Ciceros speeches, at least after the earlier ones:27 as we have already observed, the style of this speech is pitched at a higher level than normal. Apparently Archias was writing a poem about Cicero's consulship, and Cicero was eager for him to complete it. 1.79). In Pro Archia, then, it is partly in order to minimize the political element that Cicero places so much emphasis on literary questions. During his school days, he showed "unusual talent as a poet.". It furthers the University's objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education by publishing worldwide, This PDF is available to Subscribers Only. The occasional note that relates sentence structure or vocabulary choice to larger themes both fulfills pedagogical needs and also reminds us of the tricky balancing act between simply teaching and inspiring real interest in sophisticated texts with a readership at this level: fit your line solely with technical syntactical and rhetorical terms or with explanations of subjunctive X in subordinate clause Y and students are less likely to take the bait. Mr. Whelan, a former U.S. Marine, was detained minutes after he was handed a USB stick by a Russian acquaintance that Russia maintains contained a classified list of its security agents. The Lex Iulia granted Roman citizenship to all citizens of municipia on the Italic peninsula, provided they had not fought against Rome in the Social War. In addition to the vocabulary at the back C. has chosen to provide a running vocabulary on the left-hand page, thus sparing pointless flipping through either this edition or a dictionary.
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