Ad te scribam nescio: Cicero in exile and the usage of pathos to avoid the obligation to write

We analyze the use of rhetorical resources in Ciceronian epistolary discourse through which the preserving the orator’s ethos was possible (MAINGUENEAU, 2014) during his exile (58-57 BC). Through their correspondence, Roman aristocrats of the final years of the Republic mediated their social relatio...

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Detalhes bibliográficos
Autores: Oliveira, Alessandro Carvalho da Silva, Ferreira Paulino da Silva, Camilla
Formato: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2021
País:Brasil
Recursos:Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora (UFJF)
Repositorio:Rónai
Idioma:portugués
OAI Identifier:oai:periodicos.ufjf.br:article/35783
Acesso em linha:https://periodicos.ufjf.br/index.php/ronai/article/view/35783
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palavra-chave:República Romana
Retórica
Epístolas
Cícero
Exílio
Roman Republic
Rhetoric
Epistles
Cicero
Exile
Descrição
Resumo:We analyze the use of rhetorical resources in Ciceronian epistolary discourse through which the preserving the orator’s ethos was possible (MAINGUENEAU, 2014) during his exile (58-57 BC). Through their correspondence, Roman aristocrats of the final years of the Republic mediated their social relations at a distance, using letters as an alternative to personal interaction, whenever necessary. Considering that the absence (absentia) of an amicus could be considered problematic and that the delay in sending letters could cause problems for the Roman citizen ethos, Cicero used pathetici resources when figuring his exile to mitigate the potential damages of his infrequent writing. Thus, we selected excerpts from letters written by Cicero in his exile and analyzed how he used pathos for the preservation of his ethos by means of his epistolary discourse. Cicero's exile allowed him to write in a unique way, which subverted the expected behavior of an aristocrat by using his pathos.