Quintilian’s Institutes of Oratory: Classical Rhetoric and English Language Education in China

Abstract

Abstract Well known to students of rhetoric, classics, and the history of education, Quintilian’s Institutes of Oratory also merits the attention of EFL teachers and scholars who deal with public speaking and written composition. Although created in ancient Rome 2,000 years ago, the Institutes is replete with insights that are as applicable today as in Quintilian’s time. After providing historical background on Quintilian and his masterwork, this article examines his comprehensive program of speech education, his explication of the symbiotic relationship between speech and writing, and his notion of the good person speaking (and writing) well as the ideal of ethical communication. In the process, it touches upon numerous issues germane to English language educators in China and to EFL teaching and research in general.