Ancient declamation-the practice of delivering speeches on the basis of fictitious scenarios-defies easy categorization. It stands at the crossroads of several modern disciplines. It is only within the past few decades that the full complexity of declamation, and the promise inherent in its study, have come to be recognized. This volume, which contains thirteen essays from an international team of scholars, engages with the multidisciplinary nature of declamation, focusing in particular on the various interactions in declamation between rhetoric, literature, law, and ethics. Contributions pursue a range of topics, but also complement each other. Separate essays by Brescia, Lentano, and Lupi explore social roles-their tensions and expectations-as defined through declamation. With similar emphasis on historical circumstances, Quiroga Puertas and Tomassi consider the adaptation of rhetorical material to frame contemporary realities. Schwartz draws attention to the sometimes hazy borderline between declamation and the courtroom. The relationship between laws and declamation, a topic of abiding importance, is examined in studies by Berti, Breij, and Johansson. Also with an eye to the complex interaction between laws and declamation, Pasetti offers a narratological analysis of cases of poisoning. Citti discovers the concept of natural law represented in declamatory material. While looking at a case of extreme cruelty, Huelsenbeck evaluates the nature of declamatory language, emphasizing its use as an integral instrument of performance events. Zinsmaier looks at discourse on the topic of torture in rhetorical and legal contexts.

The collection of the elder Seneca assembles quotations from scores of declaimers over a period spanning sixty years, from the Augustan Age through the early decades of the empire. A view is offered onto a literary scene, for this critical period of Roman letters, that is numerously populated, highly interactive, and less dominated by just a few canonical authors. Despite this potential, modern readings have often lumped declaimers together en masse and organizational principles basic to Seneca's collection remain overlooked. This volume attempts to 'hear' the individual speech of declaimers by focusing on two speakers-Arellius Fuscus, rhetor to Ovid, and Papirius Fabianus, teacher of the younger Seneca. A key organizing principle, informing both the collection and the practice of declamation, was the 'shared locus'-a short passage, defined by verbal and argumentative ingredients, that gained currency among declaimers. Study of the operation of the shared locus carries several advantages: (1) we appreciate distinctions between declaimers; (2) we recognize shared passages as a medium of communication; and (3) the shared locus emerges as a community resource, explaining deep-seated connections between declamation and literary works.