Rhetorica Nov 1998

“Non solum sibi sed aliis etiam”: Neoplatonism and Rhetoric in Saint Augustine's De doctrina Christiana

Martin Camargo University of Missouri

Abstract

Abstract: In the Confessions (397-401) and On Christian Doctrine (396; 426), St. Augustine brackets Neoplatonic philosophy with Ciceronian rhetoric, finding the acknowledged value of each to be limited by an emphasis on individual achievement that is conducive to pride. His personal struggle to overcome such pride shaped his conception of Christian eloquence, which stresses humility through subordination to the scriptural text and service to others. The Christian orator, as defined by Augustine, is above all a teacher who embodies the biblical text, whether by using the “rule of charity” to paraphrase the truths found in Scripture, by simply repeating the actual words of the Bible, or by leading a life of charity that constitutes a kind of speech without words.

Journal
Rhetorica
Published
1998-11-01
DOI
10.1525/rh.1998.16.4.393
CompPile
Open Access
Closed
Topics
rhetorical criticism teacher development
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No articles in this index cite this work.

References (8)

  1. Murphy James J. (1960)
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    Quarterly Joumal of Speech  ↗
  2. O'Meara John J. (1958)
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    Recherches Augustiniennes  ↗
  3. Dawson David (1995)
    in Arnold and Bright, eds., De doctrina Christiana (
  4. Jordan Mark D. (1980)
    10.5840/augstudies19801116
    Augustinian Studies  ↗
  5. Williams Rowan (1989)
    10.1093/litthe/3.2.138
    . Journal of Literature & Theology  ↗
Show all 8 →
  1. Gerald (1981)
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  2. Primmer Adolf (1995)
    in Amold and Bright, eds., De doctrina Christiana (
  3. (1942)
    Rhetoric in the Middle Ages", Speculum
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