À l’école de Rhodes: un modèle de rhetor à l’époque hellénistique

In the Hellenistic age (323-31 BC), rhetoric became an important part of Greek society and culture. Despite the fact that the sources available to us are few and mostly fragmentary, scholars have pointed out that it has taken an increasingly greater place on the education of the youth and elites. This paper focuses on one of the most important centers of rhetorical training in this period: Rhodes. The analysis of literary and epigraphic evidence shows that the rhetorical tradition flourished much earlier than the second century BC, when members of the Roman elite would have frequently visited the island. Rhodian rhetoric was successful since it did not present itself as a techne divorced from the world: its purpose was to prepare future notables for their careers in public life. Rhetorical instruction given at Rhodes had a dimension of general culture, involving close links with disciplines such grammar, history, and also philosophy. This ideal was perfectly embodied by several Rhodian rhetores: as the study of their prosopography displays, they were simultaneously teachers of rhetoric and effective orators playing important roles in civil service, administration and politics, and they combined proficiency in technical aspects with interests in other fields of knowledge.