Nikephoros Basilakes’ twelfth-century invective Bagoas attacks a eunuch who bears that name. Several studies have shed light on its historical context, genre, and the author’s performance of masculinity that aims to diminish his effeminate opponent. In this paper, I intend to explore the possibility that the name “Bagoas” derives from past exemplars, which, unsurprisingly, are…
The declamationes (meletae in Greek) were model rhetorical texts, usually based on fictional themes, serving educational purposes in rhetorical practice. In the corpus of the rhetor Libanius (4th AD), there are 51 declamationes, most of which are considered authentic. The aim of my presentation is to examine the protheoria that accompany some of Libanius’ declamationes….
This paper undertakes a comprehensive examination of Sopatros’ scholastic treatise Μεταποιήσεις (“Transpositions”), a pivotal yet underexplored contribution to the rhetorical practices of Early Byzantine scholarship. The study focuses on the treatise’s innovative techniques of stylistic rewriting and its profound influence on the evolution of postclassical theories of rhetorical figures. Through an analysis of the rhetorical…