Cicero's Brutus or History of Famous Orators; also His Orator, or Accomplished Speaker.Cicero, Marcus Tullius
Philosophy
Cicero's Brutus or History of Famous Orators; also His Orator, or Accomplished Speaker.
Cicero, Marcus Tullius
Oratory -- Early works to 1800
debate, and where the stress of the argument lay; and that his method of
ranging his ideas was extremely artful, his action genteel, and his whole
manner very engaging and very sensible. In short, if to speak agreeably is
the chief merit of an Orator, you will find no one who was better
qualified than Calidius. But as we have observed a little before, that it
is the business of an Orator to instruct, to please, and _to move the
passions_; he was, indeed, perfectly master of the two first; for no one
could better elucidate his subject, or charm the attention of his
audience. But as to the third qualification,--the moving and alarming the
passions,--which is of much greater efficacy than the two former, he was
wholly destitute of it. He had no force,--no exertion;--either by his own
choice, and from an opinion that those who had a loftier turn of
expression, and a more warm and spirited action, were little betther than
madmen; or because it was contrary to his natural temper, and habitual
practice; or, lastly, because it was beyond the strength of his abilities.
If, indeed, it is a useless quality, his want of it was a real excellence:
but if otherwise, it was certainly a defect. I particularly remember, that
when he prosecuted Q. Gallius for an attempt to poison him, and pretended
that he had the plainest proofs of it, and could produce many letters,
witnesses, informations, and other evidences to put the truth of his
charge beyond a doubt, interspersing many sensible and ingenious remarks
on the nature of the crime;--I remember, I say, that when it came to my
turn to reply to him, after urging every argument which the case itself
suggested, I insisted upon it as a material circumstance in favour of my
client, that the prosecutor, while he charged him with a design against
his life, and assured us that he had the most indubitable proofs of it
then in his hands, related his story with as much ease, and as much
calmness, and indifference, as if nothing had happened."--"Would it have
been possible," said I, (addressing myself to Calidius) "that you should
speak with this air of unconcern, unless the charge was purely an
invention of your own? and, above all, that you, whose Eloquence has often
vindicated the wrongs of other people with so much spirit, should speak so
coolly of a crime which threatened your life? Where was that expression of
resentment which is so natural to the injured? Where that ardour, that
eagerness, which extorts the most pathetic language even from men of the
dullest capacities? There was no visible disorder in your mind, no emotion
in your looks and gesture, no smiting of the thigh or the forehead, nor
even a single stamp of the foot. You was, therefore, so far from
interesting our passions in your favour, that we could scarcely keep our
eyes open, while you was relating the dangers you had so narrowly escaped.
Thus we employed the natural defect, or if you please, the sensible
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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