Journal of Late Antiquity

Abstract:

Three advanced exercises practiced in the rhetorical schools of the first to the sixth centuries ce featured artists. Ēthopoiia portrays the emotional sufferings of artists as they struggle to control their subject matter and media. In ekphrasis, the artist as heir to a long tradition extending back to the world of myth seeks to understand his subjects' physical and emotional sufferings and to use them to teach moral lessons to the viewer. Declamation pits artists and honorands against their communities: the artist's claim of artistic license is sometimes at odds with the needs of his community, and the war hero's private interest sometimes conflicts with the community's desire for a public commemoration of his victory. Collectively these advanced exercises invited elite young men in the rhetorical schools to explore the potential conflicts between the private pursuits of those who, like themselves, possessed technical expertise and the public good of their local communities.