Quintilian's Institutes of Oratory

Index to Book 9

Chapter 1

Of figures often confounded with tropes, § 1-3. Difference between them, 4-6. Name not of great importance, 7-9. The word Figure is taken by some in a more extended, by others in a more confined sense, 10-14. Two kinds of figures, those of thought and those of words, 15-18. Of figures of thought, 19-21. Some make them too numerous, 22-24. Quotation from Cicero's de Oratore, 26-36. Another from Cicero's Orator, 37-45.

Chapter 2

Quintilian makes figures less numerous than Cicero and some other writers, § 1-5. Of interrogation, 6-15. Of prolepsis or anticipation, 16-18. Doubt, 19. Communication or pretense of consultation with the audience, 20-24. Permission, 25. Modes of simulation, 26-29. Of personification, 30-33. Pretended writings, and parodies, 34, 35. Other fictions of persons, 36, 37. Apostrophe, 38, 39. Vivid or representative narration and description, 40-43. Irony, 44-53. Aposiopesis, 54-57. Of imitation of other persons' manner, and some other figures, 58-63. Emphasis, 64. Of figuratae controversiae, causes in which figurative language is adopted, 65, 66. Such language is used when it is unsafe to speak plainly, 67-75. When respect for some person puts a restraint on the speaker, 76-95. Or where a fairer opportunity for speaking is sought, 96-99. Comparison, 100, 101. Other figures mentioned by different writers, 102-107.

Chapter 3

Of verbal figures; are either grammatical or rhetorical, lying either in the words themselves or in the collocation of them, § 1, 2. Use and prevalence of figures, 3-5. Figures in gender of nouns, 6. In verbs, 7. In number, 8. One part of speech put for another, 9, 10. Change in tenses and other particulars, 11-13. Some figures sanctioned by antiquity, 14-16. Some derived from the Greek, 17. Some formed by addition or retrenchment, 18. Changes in degrees of comparison, 19. Other changes, 20, 21. Parenthesis and apostrophe, 22-26. Effect of figures on the hearer, 27. Emphatical repetition of words, 28-34. Epanodos or regression, 35, 36. Polyptoton and metabole, 37-40. Ploce; artful reiteration of words, 41-44. Employment of several words nearly in the same sense, 45. Pleonasm, 46, 47. Accumulation of different words and phrases, 48, 49. Asyndeton and polysyndeton, 50-54. Climax, 55-57. Of figures formed by retrenchment of words; words left to be understood from the context, 58-61. Synezeugmenon, 62-64. Paradiastole, 65. Paronomasia, various examples of it, 66-74. Parison, homoeoteleuton, homoeoptoton, isocolon, 75-80. Antitheton, 81-86. Some writers too much devoted to multiplying and distinguishing figures; examples, 87-99. An orator should employ figures moderately and judiciously, 100-102.

Chapter 4

Of composition, or cultivation of style; authority of Cicero acknowledged, § 1, 2. Attention to composition too much discouraged by some authors, 3, 4. In everything the powers of nature should be cultivated to the utmost, 5-7. Union of power with grace, 8, 9. Excellence of style serves not only to please but to convince the hearer, 10-13. This may be proved by altering the arrangement of words and phrases in elegant composition, 14, 15. Style not neglected by the ancients, 16-18. Prose may be more or less compact and studied, 19-21. Particulars that require attention in it, 22. Of order, 23-31. Of junctions of words, and of hiatus, 32-36. Of junctions of consonants and vowels and the repetition of syllables, 37-43. Of members and commas, 44. Of numbers or rhythm, 45. Difference between rhythm and meter, 46-51. Of feet in prose; a remark of Cicero, 52-55. How far number or rhythm should be studied in prose, 56. Oratorical numbers or rhythm, 57-60. Attention to numbers most requisite at the beginnings and ends of periods, 61-65. What regard to be paid to the middle parts, 66-71. Of the occurrence of verses, or parts of verses, in prose, 72-76. Everything that sounds like meter should be avoided, 77, 78. Of feet, 79-86. All kinds of feet must enter into prose composition, 87-89. Are varied by union and division, 90, 91. The force and influence of particular feet, 92-94. Of the closing feet of periods, 95-109. Of the fourth paeon, 110, 111. A speaker must not be too solicitous about his measures, 112-115. The ear must judge; many things cannot be taught by rule, 116-121. Of commata, 122, 123. Of a period, and its members, 124-127. What kinds of sentences are eligible for particular parts of speeches, and for particular subjects, 128-130. What feet should prevail in certain sorts of composition, 131-137. Composition and delivery must be alike varied to suit different subjects, 138-141. A rough and forcible style preferable to the smooth and nerveless, 142-145. Concluding remarks, 146, 147.


Lee Honeycutt (honeycuttlee@gmail.com) Last modified:5/21/2004