Rhetorical Displays of Knowledge in «Leucippe and Clitophon»: Animal Talk

Abstract

ABSTRACT: «Progymnasmata» in particular, and rhetoric in general, are typically acknowledged to have influenced the composition of Greek novels. As regards Achilles Tatius’ «Leucippe and Clitophon», recent studies have discussed how Clitophon, the main character and also the principal narrator, has a tendency to indulge in exuberant rhetorical displays, even when he has no real knowledge to sustain these. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the rhetorical skills of the characters of «L&C» through an analysis of their basic rhetorical output. The fables, narratives and descriptions produced by the characters in the novel should help us to understand their characterisation better, as well as the uses and social significance of rhetoric in «L&C» (i.e. how rhetoric is used according to age, gender and social criteria). In order to maintain this research within manageable boundaries, the principal focus will be on displays of knowledge in relation to one topic, namely animals.