Cicero's Political Personae (2020)
"Cicero’s speeches provide a fascinating window into the political battles and crises of his time. In this book, Joanna Kenty examines Cicero’s persuasive strategies and the subtleties of his Latin prose, and shows how he used eight political personae – the attacker, the grateful friend, the martyr, the senator, the partisan ideologue, and others – to maximize his political leverage in the latter half of his career. These personae were what made his arguments convincing, and drew audiences into Cicero’s perspective. Non-specialist and expert readers alike will gain new insight into Cicero’s corpus and career as a whole, as well as a better appreciation of the context, details, and nuances of individual passages."
Reviews
The results of this study are exciting and innovative. In particular, Kenty’s interest in Cicero’s rhetorical strategies in the later speeches results in a new paradigm for their study: distinct rhetorical political personae Kenty argues underlie the main action of Cicero’s speeches. … These case studies according to this eightfold division are rigorous, thorough, largely convincing, thought-provoking and well-researched. Each page is brimming with insightful commentary, new directions in analysis and clear command of the relevant scholarship. I have every confidence it will be a compelling companion to scholars and students of these speeches.
Classical Journal online, August 2022
In this handsome and eminently readable book, Joanna Kenty has set out not to make her own Cicero but to expose the way that Cicero made his Ciceros in the years between his return from exile in 57 and his death in 43 BC. …Overall, this is a vexing book. On the one hand, it is well-written, free from any noticeable errors, with appropriate notes, a solid bibliography and many interesting things to say about Ciceronian self-fashioning after his return from exile. On the other hand, the exposition and analysis of how the personae worked together leaves the reader wanting more. …Kenty’s engaging book deepens our understanding of Cicero’s self-fashioning and invites all its readers to dive headlong into further study of Cicero’s political and rhetorical personae. Ciceronians of all stripes would do well to read it.
Classical Journal online, March 2023
Cicero’s Political Personae is not only a well-informed and deeply researched study, but also a highly entertaining read for everyone acquainted with Cicero. By “linking philology and persuasive process criticism with history” (p. 14), K. walks us through the nuances of Roman republican oratory and politics. Her stimulating discussion of Cicero’s varying self-portrayals across his varying oratorical roles sometimes draws explicit parallels with modern society, exhorting the reader to notice similarities with the contemporary PR industry. I strongly recommend this book to students of Cicero and the late Roman republic, as well as to anyone interested in the shaping of the public self.
Eos: Commentarii Societatis Philologae Polonorum 2021
This is an important book for anyone interested in Cicero’s speeches in the years after his return from exile, scholars and students alike.
BMCR, March 2023
Throughout Cicero’s Political Personae, Kenty links seemingly un-related speeches by their shared personae, which allows for a uniquely complex and comprehensive cross-section of Cicero’s later work.
Journal for the History of Rhetoric, March 2022
The book is well researched, and its extensive bibliography is an invaluable starting point for further research on Ciceronian oratory. Kenty makes a good case for reading neglected speeches of the 50s and 40s BCE, such as Pro Balbo, Pro Plancio, Pro Ligario, and Pro Marcello with fresh eyes.
Classical Review, October 2023