In Defense of New Stoicism: Public Advocacy and Political Thought in the Age of Nero

Advances in the History of Rhetoric Apr 2011

In Defense of New Stoicism: Public Advocacy and Political Thought in the Age of Nero

Samuel McCormick

Abstract

ABSTRACT Philosophers have rarely been on good terms with the city and its rulers. Among the rhetorical devices with which they have defended themselves and their discipline, few have proven more reliable than the Straussian technique of “philosophic politics.” This article calls attention to a defining moment in the history of this persuasive technique: Seneca the Younger's defense of Roman Stoicism in the mid-first century CE. In light of his public advocacy and political thought, the article concludes that an expansion of the concept of philosophic politics is in order. In addition to philosophical tracts and treatises, it should be widened to include the nonphilosophical works of their authors.

Journal: Advances in the History of Rhetoric
Published: 2011-04-15
DOI: 10.1080/15362426.2011.559403
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Topics: writing across the curriculum

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Also cites 6 works outside this index ↓

Gill (2000)

Stoic Writers in the Imperial Era

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Griffin (1984)

Nero: The End of a Dynasty

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MacMullen (1966)

Enemies of the Roman Order: Treason, Unrest, and Alienation in the Empire

↗
McCormick (2005)

The Artistry of Obedience: From Kant to Kingship

Philosophy & Rhetoric ↗
McCormick

Letters to Power: Public Advocacy without Public Intellectuals

↗
Schofield (1999)

Social and Political Thought

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