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Isaeus in the Forest of Rhetoric and the Cosmos of Law
February 4, 2021 at 12:00 pm
Professor Mike Edwards of Royal Holloway, University of London to give the Polopolus lecture 2021 at UF.
Isaeus (c. 415-c. 340 BCE) was a member of the classical Canon of Ten Attic Orators, a professional speechwriter who in the ancient tradition was the teacher of Demosthenes. His eleven surviving speeches concern inheritance disputes, a complicated area of Athenian law in which he was clearly an expert and for which he is one of our most important, but controversial sources. In this lecture, Edwards will examine various aspects of Isaeus’ rhetorical technique, and how he uses — and perhaps abuses — the law to secure victory for his clients.
The event is part of the 2021 Polopolus Lecture Series and is sponsored by the UF Centre for Greek Studies.