1. declamations in character or on deliberative themes: Such declamations are sometimes classified as Suasoriae, as in the treatise of the same name by Seneca the Elder. They ask the student to give advice to a historical or mythical figure at some crisis in his life.
2. Quintus Hortensius: Quintus Hortensius Hortalus (114–49 BCE, consul 69 BCE), most prominent orator of the late Roman Republic, with the exception of Cicero.
3. Timotheus: Greek lyre player and composer of dithyrambs (c.450–360 BCE).
4. Phidias: Athenian sculptor (latter part of fifth century BCE). His statue of Zeus (Roman Jupiter) at Olympia was considered one of the most remarkable sculptures of the ancient world.
5. Phoenix: The tutor of Achilles, he accompanied him to the war at Troy according to Homer’s Iliad.
6. ‘I want creativity to express itself in the young’: Cicero, On the Orator 2.88.
7. shrink from the blade: The phrase echoes Virgil, Georgics 2.369.
8. whether it’s believable … Egeria: The themes ask the student to reflect on the likelihood of famous incidents from Roman history. Marcus Valerius Corvus was military tribune in 349 BCE. When he faced an enormous Gallic warrior in single combat, a raven is said to have attacked the enemy’s face, making it possible for Valerius to defeat him. Various legends clustered around Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus (236–183 BCE), who led the Roman victory in the Second Punic War. Romulus, the first king of Rome, was supposedly nursed (together with his twin Remus) by a she-wolf, and Numa, the second king of Rome, was said to have held consultations with the local water-nymph Egeria.
9. Livy: Titus Livius (59 BCE–17 CE), Roman historian, author of a 142-volume work on the history of Rome from its legendary origins to his own lifetime. Livy explicitly withholds judgement about the veracity of many stories concerning the early periods of Roman history.
10. the third section of rhetoric … own place: Quintilian discusses the topic in Oratorical Instruction, Book 3, chapter 7.
11. Cicero … Speech in Defence of Murena. In 63 BCE Cicero defended the newly elected consul Lucius Licinius Murena against charges of electoral misconduct. During the speech he contrasts Murena’s contributions to the Roman state with that of the highly legalistic prosecution team.
12. why is Cupid … arrows and a torch: The question forms the basis for Elegy 2.12 by the Augustan-era poet Sextus Propertius.
13. controversiae: Controversiae are exercises that deal with a problematical application of a law or conflict between laws. Numerous examples survive in Seneca the Elder’s treatise called Controversiae.
14. suasoriae: These are exercises in which the student must advise a character from history or legend at a moment of crisis, or persuade an imaginary audience to follow a particular course of action. Numerous examples survive in Seneca the Elder’s treatise called Suasoriae.
15. Publius Clodius: Presumably Publius Clodius Pulcher (c.93–52 BCE). He had himself transferred from the patrician to the plebeian wing of his clan in order to run for the position of tribune of the plebs. He was an inveterate enemy of Cicero.
16. the Manilian law, on which we have Cicero’s speech: The Manilian Law of 66 BCE gave Pompey command of the Roman forces against King Mithradates VI Eupator of Pontus. Cicero argued strongly in its favour in a speech called On the Manilian Law or On the Command of Pompey.
17. Demetrius of Phalerum: Athenian orator, scholar and politician (c.350–c.280 BCE). He was appointed by the Macedonians as, in effect, regent of Athens.
18. Cicero is the one … being the most famous: The early Latin schools of declamation, which were suppressed by Crassus (consul 95 BCE), are discussed in Cicero, On the Orator 3.93–4.
19. chunk by chunk: Roman students often encountered texts written continuously without punctuation. The preliminary reading mentioned here may have included the addition of punctuation on the part of the student. See T. Habinek, The Colometry of Latin Prose (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1985).
20. Livy rather than Sallust: Livy: see note 9. The surviving works of Sallust (86–c.35 BCE) include monographic studies of the Conspiracy of Catiline and the War with Jugurtha.
21. Gracchi and Cato: Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus (tribune of the plebs 133 BCE), Gaius Sempronius Gracchus (tribune of the plebs 123 and 122 BCE) and Marcus Porcius Cato (consul 195 BCE) left a number of speeches that were still available to readers of Quintilian’s day.
22. Isocrates … Ephorus … Theopompus: Isocrates (436–338 BCE) was an Athenian intellectual who had many prominent students including the historians Ephorus and Theopompus.
23. Nicostratus: Famous athlete of the middle of the first century CE. The victories referred to here took place in 37 CE.
24. sponsions and interdicts: Technical features of Roman law. A sponsion is a formal pledge made on behalf of another; an interdict is a remedy imposed by the praetor in cases where the law offers no specific guidelines.
25. Theodorus or Apollodorus, said, ‘I follow the Thracians’: Theodorus and Apollodorus were leaders of opposing schools of rhetoric. The unnamed wit acts as though they were leaders of athletic teams or representatives of particular sports (the word translated here as ‘Thracians’ is parmularius, which refers to a type of shield used by so-called Thracian gladiators).
26. not in the shade, as Cicero has it: The reference is to Cicero, On the Orator 3.101.
27. Gaius Curio: Gaius Scribonius Curio (consul 76 BCE), occasionally a political opponent of Cicero.
28. Quintus Metellus Celer … Quintus Varius, Gaius Carbo and Gnaeus Pomponius: Cicero lists of number of less well-known figures who were active in his youth, i.e. Quintus Caecilius Metellus Celer (consul 60 BCE), Quintus Varius (tribune of the plebs 91 BCE), Gaius Papirius Carbo (tribune of the plebs 90 BCE), who was killed by supporters of Marius in 82 BCE, and Gnaeus Pomponius (tribune of the plebs 90 BCE).
29. Gaius Julius: Gaius Julius Caesar Strabo Vopiscus was curule aedile in 90 BCE. He has a speaking part in Cicero’s dialogue On the Orator.
30. Cotta: Gaius Aurelius Cotta (c.124–c.74 BCE, consul 75 BCE) was exiled in 90 BCE by a commission charged with identifying Romans who had aided the Italians during the Social War. He appears as a character in Cicero’s On the Orator.
31. Quintus Varius: Tribune of the plebs in 91 BCE, established the commission that exiled Cotta. It ended up exiling him as well.
32. Quintus Scaevola: Quintus Mucius Scaevola, the augur (consul 177 BCE). He has an important speaking role in Cicero, On the Orator.
33. Sulla and Pompey: Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix (c.138–78 BCE) was a Roman military and political leader known for his brutal treatment of political opponents. Quintus Pompeius Rufus, was consul along with Sulla in 88 BCE.
34. Publius Sulpicius: Publius Sulpicius Rufus was tribune of the plebs in 88 BCE and a political ally of Gaius Marius (c.157–86 BCE). He also figures in Cicero’s treatise On the Orator as an eager student of the chief speaker, Crassus.
35. Philo: Philo of Larissa (159/8–84/3 BCE), leader of the Academy at Athens before fleeing to Rome.
36. Quintus Catulus, Marcus Antonius and Gaius Julius: Quintus Lutatius Catulus (consul 102 BCE) and Gaius Julius Caesar Strabo Vopiscus (curule aedile 90 BCE) both appear in Cicero’s On the Orator. Marcus Antonius (consul 99 BCE) was one of the two main speakers in the same work.
37. Molo the Rhodian: A famous professor of Greek rhetoric who also served as ambassador from Rhodes to Rome. Besides Cicero, Julius Caesar also studied with him. Also known as Apollonius Molon.
38. Brutus: Cicero turns to one of the interlocutors in the represented dialogue and the namesake of the treatise, Marcus Junius Brutus (85–42 BCE). The date of composition of the Brutus is 46 BCE, during the dictatorship of Julius Caesar. Cicero seems uncertain of Brutus’ political commitments, a situation that will change dramatically with Brutus’ leadership in the assassination of Caesar in 44 BCE.
39. Atticus: Titus Pomponius Atticus (110–32 BCE), close friend, adviser and correspondent of Cicero. He is the subject of a biography by Cornelius Nepos, who was his contemporary.
40. Quintus Hortensius: Quintus Hortensius Hortalus (114–49 BCE, consul 69 BCE) was Cicero’s older contemporary and rival for oratorical pre-eminence at Rome.
41. young Marcus Crassus … two Lentuli: Marcus Licinius Crassus (consul 70 and 55 BCE) had fled to Spain in 87 BCE to avoid proscription. The whereabouts of Gnaeus Cornelius Lentulus Clodianus (consul 72 BCE) and Publius Cornelius Lentulus Sura (consul 71 BCE) are unknown. Clodianus is perhaps best known for being defeated by the forces of Spartacus.
42. Antistius … Philippus: Cicero adopts an elegiac tone in commemorating the many talented speakers of his lifetime. Included here are Publius Antistius (tribune of the plebs 88 BCE), Marcus Pupius Piso Frugi Calpurnianus (consul 61 BCE), Gnaeus Pomponius (tribune of the plebs 90 BCE), Gaius Papirius Carbo (tribune of the plebs 90 BCE) and Lucius Marcius Philippus (consul 91 BCE).
43. Diodotus the Stoic: Little is known of him except for his relationship to Cicero. It was fairly common for leading Romans of the late republic to have Greek intellectuals as part of their large households: see E. Rawson, Intellectual Life in the Late Roman Republic (Baltimore and London: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1985).
44. the Stoics call expanded dialectic: In a famous image, the Stoic Zeno likened dialectic to a closed fist, rhetoric to the same hand unclenched.
45. Marcus Piso or Quintus Pompeius: Presumably Marcus Pupius Piso Frugi Calpurnianus (consul 61 BCE) and Quintus Pompeius Rufus (praetor 63 BCE, the year of Cicero’s consulship).
46. Scaevola, Carbo and Antistius: Quintus Mucius Scaevola (consul 95 BCE), Gaius Papirius Carbo (tribune of the plebs 90 BCE) and Publius Antistius (tribune of the plebs 88 BCE) were all killed during the struggles between Marius and Sulla.
47. Cotta, Curio, Crassus, the Lentuli and Pompey: Gaius Aurelius Cotta (c.124–c.74 BCE, consul 75 BCE) had been exiled in 90 BCE. Gaius Scribonius Curio (consul 76 BCE) had served in the war against Mithradates. Marcus Licinius Crassus (consul 70 and 55 BCE) had fled to Spain in 87 BCE to avoid proscription. Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (106–48 BCE) returned to Rome in 81 BCE after defeating the supporters of Marius, who had fled to Sicily and Africa. Gnaeus Cornelius Lentulus Clodianus (consul 72 BCE) and Publius Cornelius Lentulus Sura (consul 71 BCE) may have been with him on campaign.
48. Pomponius, Censorinus and Murena: Gnaeus Pomponius (tribune of the plebs 90 BCE); probably Gaius Marcius Censorinus, an opponent of Sulla; probably Lucius Licinius Murena, general in the war against Mithradates and father of the consul of the same name (62 BCE).
49. on behalf of Sextus Roscius: Cicero’s first public case was his defence of Sextus Roscius of Ameria against a charge of parricide.
50. Antiochus: Antiochus of Ascalon (c.125–c.68 BCE), Greek philosopher who sought to revive the traditional teachings of the Academy against more recent sceptical philosophers.
51. Demetrius the Syrian: Unknown.
52. Menippus of Stratonice: Greek orator from Stratoniceia in Caria.
53. Dionysius of Magnesia … Aeschylus of Cnido and Xenocles of Adramyttium: Dionysius of Magnesia and Aeschylus of Cnido are known only from the Brutus; Xenocles of Adramyttium is said to have made a speech before the Roman senate on behalf of Asia during the conflict with Mithradates (Strabo, Geography 13.1.66).
54. the side of the Sicilians: Cicero refers to his prosecution of Verres for extortion and abuse of power as governor of Sicily.
55. been elected consul: Cicero held the consulate in 63 BCE.
56. Pompeian law: A law of 52 BCE designed to restrict the length of trials.
57. Timaeus: Greek historian from Sicily (c.350–260 BCE).
58. Hierocles … his brother Menecles: Cicero refers to these two admired orators from Alabanda in Caria, Asia Minor, at On the Orator 2.95 and Orator 231.
59. Aeschines of Miletus: Aeschines of Miletus reported by other ancient sources to be a ‘rhetor’ and ‘political writer’.
60. Philippus: Presumably Lucius Marcius Philippus (consul 91 BCE).
61. strict control of his language: The Latin text here is muddled. It’s possible that Cicero is saying that Hortensius used a disciplined periodic style in his speeches.
62. defence of Messalla … when you were away: Marcus Valerius Messalla Rufus (c.104/3–26 BCE, consul 53 BCE) was acquitted in 51 BCE on a corruption charge at a trial in which he was defended by his uncle Hortensius. See Cicero, Letters to Atticus 5.12. Cicero was serving as governor of Cilicia at the time.
63. from the consulship … Marcellus: I.e. from 95 BCE to 50 BCE.
64. dictatorship of Sulla: 81 BCE.
65. Dio of Prusa: Also known as Dio Chrysostom or Dio Cocceianus (c.40/50–after 110 CE), a rhetorician and preacher of Stoic doctrine who was banished under the emperor Domitian, but returned to Rome and became an associate of the emperor Trajan. His hometown, Prusa (modern Bursa), was in north-west Asia Minor (modern Turkey). Almost eighty speeches attributed to Dio survive from antiquity. On his life and work see S. Swain (ed.), Dio Chrysostom: Politics, Letters and Philosophy (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000).
66. Horn of Amaltheia: In Greek mythology, Amaltheia was a goat-goddess who provided nourishment for Zeus during his infancy on the island of Crete. Her horn, when broken off, was filled with food of various sorts. It is the origin of the modern notion of a Horn of Plenty, or cornucopia.
67. Demosthenes and Plato: Demosthenes (384–322 BCE) was the most prominent Greek orator; Plato (c.429–347 BCE) one of the chief philosophers of the ancient world.
68. praised cities: Speeches in praise of cities were a common type of epideictic oration, especially under the Roman Empire when Greek cities sought to maintain a sense of local identity and distinction.
69. Getica … Getae: Getae was a name used by Greek and Roman writers to refer to various groups of non-Greek people residing in modern Bulgaria and Romania. Dio’s Getica, or Getic Affairs, may have been an ethnographic account of the region.
70. Euboean Tale and Praise of a Parrot: Dio’s Euboean Tale survives, his Praise of a Parrot does not.
71. Apollonius of Tyana: A travelling philosopher and holy man who lived during the first century CE. Philostratus’ writings include a laudatory biography of the man.
72. Euphrates the Tyrian: Stoic philosopher of the first century CE. The Roman author Pliny the Younger was an admirer, as indicated by his Letter 1.10.
73. It’s not right … order of exile: Dio’s exact status during his years away from Rome is unclear, as is the reason for his departure.
74. Then much-scheming Odysseus stripped off his rags: As Homer, Odyssey 22.1, said of Odysseus as he prepares to take vengeance on the men who have been pursuing his wife in his absence.
75. Trajan: Marcus Ulpius Traianus (53–117 CE), Roman emperor, 98–117 CE.
76. Favorinus: Sophist from Gaul (modern France) who became intellectually and socially prominent at Rome (c.85–155 CE).
77. Hadrian: Publius Aelius Hadrianus (76–138 CE), Roman emperor, 117–138 CE. Although emperor of Rome, he demonstrated a strong interest in contemporary Greek culture.
78. when he is … a lesser man: Quotation from Homer, Iliad 1.80.
79. My teacher Dio: Dio of Prusa, subject of the preceding biography.
80. forced to drink hemlock: The Athenian authorities forced the philosophical gadfly Socrates (469–399 BCE) to drink hemlock for the crimes of which he was convicted. The episode provides the context for several works of classical literature, including Plato’s Apology of Socrates, Crito and Phaedo.
81. Herodes: Tiberius Claudius Atticus Herodes (101–77 CE) was an Athenian sophist and Roman consul (143 CE). He is also the subject of a biography by Philostratus, not included here.
82. When will I see you and lick your face: Possibly a reference to a verse from the comic playwright Aristophanes.
83. Polemo: Marcus Antonius Polemo (c.88–144 CE), another sophist and subject of a biography by Philostratus, not included here.
84. the speeches against Proxenus: None of the speeches of Favorinus mentioned here survive.
85. Pyrrhonians: A school of philosophy that took its name from Pyrrho of Elis (c.365–275 BCE). The Pyrrhonians to whom Philostratus refers, and whom Favorinus defended, deny the possibility of secure human knowledge and are thus treated as early Sceptics.
86. Scopelian: Philostratus is almost our only source of information about this teacher, who must have flourished in the late first and early second centuries CE.
87. dithyrambist: Dithyramb was a genre of poetry that originated in the cult of Dionysus. As used here, the term seems to imply a self-indulgent, highly emotional type of language and performance.
88. proverbial ox of silence: See Theognis 651, Aeschylus, Agamemnon 36, Philostratus, Life of Apollonius 11. The origin and exact significance of the proverb are uncertain.
89. Anaxagoras: A fifth-century BCE philosopher, like Scopelian a native of Clazomenae. He lost his property in Athens when he was exiled from that city.
90. Gigantea … Homerids: A Gigantea would most likely be a poem on the exploits of the mythical Giants; Homerids were professional reciters of epic poetry.
91. Gorgias of Leontini: One of most influential speakers and teachers in Sicily of the late fifth century BCE. He specialized in a literary style full of balanced phrases and sound effects.
92. Darius Xerxes: Presumably Darius I (c.550–486 BCE) and Xerxes I (518–465 BCE), kings of Persia who directed invasions of Greece. Among the many themes for declamation were transformative events from earlier periods of history.
93. shield of Ajax: Scopelian seems to suggest that if he is in fact dancing and playing, it is the dancing and playing characteristic of military training. Ajax was an important Greek hero at the time of the Trojan War.
94. Orpheus or Thamyris: In Greek mythology Orpheus was a singer so compelling that he could cause rocks and trees to move to his music, and Thamyris a human musician who sought to rival the Muses.
95. Pactolus: This river in Asia Minor was reputed to carry gold dust in its waters.
96. Give me your armour … take me for you: Scopelian quotes Homer, Iliad 16.40–41, in which Patroclus seeks to don the armour of Achilles.