Book contents
- Rulers and Ruled in Ancient Greece, Rome, and China
- Rulers and Ruled in Ancient Greece, Rome, and China
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Maps
- Contributors
- Preface
- Chronology of the Ancient Mediterranean
- Chronology of Ancient China
- Maps of Ancient China, Greece, and Rome
- The Many Faces of “the People” in the Ancient World
- Part I Authority and Lifestyles of Distinction
- Part II The People as Agents and Addressees
- Chapter 4 Rhetoric, Oratory and People in Ancient Rome and Early China
- Chapter 5 Female Commoners and the Law in Early Imperial China
- Chapter 6 Registers of “the People” in Greece, Rome, and China
- Chapter 7 Food Distribution for the People
- Part III Inversions of the People: Emperors and Tyrants
- Part IV Identities and “Others”
- Glossary
- Index
- References
Chapter 4 - Rhetoric, Oratory and People in Ancient Rome and Early China
from Part II - The People as Agents and Addressees
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 19 January 2021
Book contents
- Rulers and Ruled in Ancient Greece, Rome, and China
- Rulers and Ruled in Ancient Greece, Rome, and China
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Maps
- Contributors
- Preface
- Chronology of the Ancient Mediterranean
- Chronology of Ancient China
- Maps of Ancient China, Greece, and Rome
- The Many Faces of “the People” in the Ancient World
- Part I Authority and Lifestyles of Distinction
- Part II The People as Agents and Addressees
- Chapter 4 Rhetoric, Oratory and People in Ancient Rome and Early China
- Chapter 5 Female Commoners and the Law in Early Imperial China
- Chapter 6 Registers of “the People” in Greece, Rome, and China
- Chapter 7 Food Distribution for the People
- Part III Inversions of the People: Emperors and Tyrants
- Part IV Identities and “Others”
- Glossary
- Index
- References
Summary
This chapter will compare the oratorical cultures of ancient Rome and early imperial China in the period from ca. 200 bce to 200 ce: that is, the two last centuries of the Republican age and the early empire in Roman history, and the Qin and Han dynasties in China.1 It will examine especially the practices of oratory and the function of oratory as a means of communication between rulers and people. It will first describe the institutional mechanisms and venues in which oratory before the people was developed in Rome, to then explore whether such oratory before the people existed in early imperial China at all, or whether its institutions prompted a different oratorical culture. This investigation will allow us to draw some conclusions on the role of the people in decision-making processes and on the relation between the people and rulers in Rome and China.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Rulers and Ruled in Ancient Greece, Rome, and China , pp. 133 - 155Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2021
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