God and man in the classical latin panegyric

Abstract

This paper is specifically concerned with the classical Latin panegyric, thus excluding both panegyrics from late antiquity, where the religious context is substantially different, and (at least in the first instance) panegyrical literature in Greek, with its distinctive linguistic and hence ideological background. I am, moreover, defining ‘panegyric’ to comprise only speeches in praise of a living person or persons: the religious status of living people, and the language applied to them, manifestly raise particular problems not present with other objects of praise.But there are on the face of things difficulties with this definition. There is an obvious overlap between panegyrical speeches and other forms of oratory: themes of praise can clearly play a role, for example, in forensic speeches. Conversely, according to both ancient theorists and modern commentators, panegyrics can be used to give advice, either openly or covertly – the latter when, for example, one recommends future clemency to a tyrant under the guise of praising examples of clemency in the past. I shall be dealing only with speeches that are overtly panegyrical in form, those whose ostensible object is not persuasion, but simple praise; but the limitation seems rather artificial.