Transcript Thucydides, Pericles & Classical Oration

Thucydides, Pericles & Classical
Oration
Thucydides
• 460 B.C.- 404 B.C.
• Important military magistrate in the
Peloponnesian War
• Failed to protect Amphipolis, an important
Athenian colony, from a Spartan attack and
was sent to trial for this military failure
• Trial ended with Thucydides being exiled
Thucydides
• While exiled, he watched the war from afar
– Chronicles the events that took place
– Spoke with Athenians and Spartans
• Wrote the History of the Peloponnesian War,
based on what he observed during that time.
– Viewed as one of the greatest historians, due to
his objective, scientific approach to his work
Thucydides
• Thucydides was interest in the psychology of
war and human behavior in war time.
– History would be understood by studying human
behavior
• Many of the speeches included within his
writing serve to highlight the motives and
ambitions of both Sparta and Athens.
– Recorded speeches by memory, filled in missing
information with what he believed the speakers
would have said
Pericles’ Funeral Oration
• One of the speeches included in Thucydides
History of the Peloponnesian War
• Speech presents a glowing account of
Athenian democracy, but does not present a
complete picture of its imperialistic policies
Classical Oration
• Oration- The art of persuasion. Formal speech
that appeals to the emotions of the audience.
The purpose is to inspire listeners and incite
them to action, was a major interest in
Classical times.
Classical Oration
• Seven parts of classical oration
– The opening
– The narration
– The exposition
– The proposition to clarify the points
– A confirmation to address the arguments for and
against
– The refutation
– The conclusion
Classical Oration
• The Opening
– Used to get the attention of the audience
– Speaker discloses the topic to be discussed as well
as their position on the matter
– Presents thesis for argument
Classical Oration
• The Narration
– Recital of objective facts
– Brief history of problem, situation or topic
– Should be neutral and matter-of-fact so the
speaker gains the trust of the audience
Classical Oration
• The Exposition
– Definition of terms to be explained or issues to be
proven.
Classical Oration
• The Proposition
– Clarifies the points to be covered and states
exactly what is to be proven
– Sometimes included in the Exposition
Classical Oration
• Confirmation to address the arguments for
and against the proposition
– Address the other side
Classical Oration
• The Refutation
– Refutes the opposing argument
– The speaker must show that he is well informed,
know the opposite points of view, but have
excellent reason for not believing them.
– Can be a personal appeal of the speaker (ethos),
emotion (pathos) or logic (logos).
Classical Oration
• The Conclusion
– Summarizes the argument and stirs the audience
– Arouses sympathy
– Moves audience to action
– Aristotle says the conclusion has four tasks:
• Leave the audience well-disposed to the speaker and
ill-disposed to the opponent
• Magnify speaker’s points
• Leave audience in proper mood
• Summarize main points of argument