Rhetoric and divine names in De Natura Deorum, II

Abstract

In De Natura Deorum, book II, the author Cicero promotes, through the character Balbus, the prevailing precepts of philosophical stoic school in Rome, specially concerning the nature, physical form and names of gods which are explained by considering the philological and semantic aspects of the words attributed to them. It is noticeable the attempt of argumention through a speech widely on the current rhetorical precepts utilized by the character Balbus so as to convince his interlocutors Velleius and Cotta, who represent the Epicurist and Academicist Schools, respectively. In order to verify the arguments proposed, the text primarily demonstrates the rhetorical structure used by Balbus in his speech throughout the second book: proem, narratio and conclusio; then, important paragraphs of the narration are analysed so as to enable as understanding of stoic ideal concerning the names given to the gods.