Libanius: Selected Orations, Volume I, Julianic Orations (Loeb Classical Library No. 451) (Hardcover)

by Libanius (Author), A. F. Norman (Translator)

Editorial Reviews

Review
Norman's command of his material is complete and remarkable. (Times Literary Supplement )

Product Description

Libanius (314–393 CE) was one of the last great publicists and teachers of Greek paganism. His story, as presented in his Autobiography and the Life by Eunapius, is supplemented by information from a correspondence of over 1500 items and 64 extant orations. A native of Antioch, he began his teaching career in Constantinople in 340, but soon had to retire to Nicomedeia, where he became acquainted with St. Basil and influential in the development of Julian's paganism. After a second tenure at Constantinople he returned home to become professor in Antioch in 354, a position which he held, through many vicissitudes, for the rest of his life.

As sophist of Antioch and a devoted exponent of the traditional Hellenic system of education, Libanius remained deliberately and contemptuously unacquainted with Latin, and deplored its growing influence. Naturally humane in outlook and sympathizing with the local bourgeoisie, he criticized bitterly the encroachments and oppressions of the central administration, and the general cruelty of his day. Sincerely pagan in an increasingly aggressive Christian society, he became an influential voice against religious persecution, official or unofficial. The orations on Julian, to whose memory he remained devoted all his life, were composed between 362 and 365, and present Libanius with a congenial subject, revealing him at the height of his powers and influence.

Also available in the Loeb Classical Library is a two-volume edition of Libanius's Autobiography and Selected Letters.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 592 pages
• Publisher: Loeb Classical Library (January 1, 1969)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0674994965
• ISBN-13: 978-0674994966
• Product Dimensions: 6.5 x 4.4 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,764,668 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Libanius: In Praise of Julian, February 2, 2006

By	Johannes Platonicus (South Bend, Indiana) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

Libanius of Antioch was one of the most industrious and voluminous writers of all antiquity (AD 314-393). His contemporaries hailed him as the finest of orators and rhetoricians, while the philosophical inner-circles of the Greek East found in him a learned sophist to whom they consulted for insights into the higher meaning of Hesiod and Homer. Libanius may be compared to one of his correspondents, the famous golden-mouthed orator Quintus Aurelius Symmachus, who is also well-known, like Libanius, for his rhetoric and assiduous traditional pagan values. Furthermore, Libanius was respected and admired by Hellenists and Christians alike [despite religious disparity], while at times his pen spilled out diplomatic ink in addresses to dignitaries like Sapor, the warrior-king of the new-born Persian Empire. Libanius was proud of his Hellenism and sought by all means to support the emperor Julian in his pagan revival; and he zealously persisted in this campaign even in the wake of the reign of the religious autocrat, Theodosius the Great's, whose laws directed against pagan syncretic religion dealt it devistating blows. This volume then concerns itself solely with Julian, his hardships growing up, his exploits in war, his rise to the purple, his virtues, his religion, his short-lived reformed regime and his sudden death. All the Orations selected here, of course, speak on Julian's behalf; and they are bedecked with sincere words poured out from a personal friend of Julian, who shared with him a common spirit for Greek letters and the mystic rites of ancient Greece. With this said, this volume will be very useful--and even indispensable--to students of the era. Even though this is just one of the many by-partisan accounts of Julian's life, there is something unique about Libanius' connection to Julian. A must have for lovers of Late Rome.