Plato, Isocrates and Aristotle on Cicero’s De oratore

Abstract

This article analyzes the incorporation of the ideas of Plato, Isocrates and Aristotle in Cicero’s theory of rhetoric, as present in the book De oratore. The cuts, changes and adaptations made by the Roman speaker in the thoughts of those authors to develop his own ideas can be noticed. The analysis focuses on three points that organize the work, relating them to each of the Greek thinkers: the speaker’s profile, the pedagogical proposal and the contents, which are referred to Plato, Isocrates and Aristotle, respectively. In fact, Cicero does not merely reproduce the thought of these authors, but adapts them to his theory.