Isocrates

Isocrates was born in 436 B.C. and died in 338 B.C. He was one of the most significant rhetorician in the Ancient period, writing both courtroom and political speeches as well as correspondence.

Isocrates, himself, rarely made speeches due to his weak voice and shy nature. His speeches were distributed in writing and read all over Greece. In 390 B.C. he opened an rhetoric school in Athens, which went on to gain great fame.

His main work, however, was his attempt to incite the Greeks to cease their civil conflicts and unite against the Persians in order to avenge themselves of the rule of Xerxes. Isocrates considered the internal strife the source of all the problems in Greece and the creation of an aggressive campaign against Persia as the only solutions.

Furthermore, Isocrates aided in the development of the Art of Rhetoric and the quality of the processing of orations, combining it with internal unity in rhythm and language, musicality and harmonic composition.