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Ancient Greek Speeches Challenge Common Assumptions

Ancient Greek public speeches often challenged accepted ideas, according to a new paper by Davide Napoli, Klarman Postdoctoral Fellow in government at Cornell University College of Arts and Sciences. In his research, Napoli examines how intellectuals in classical Greece used speeches not to express personal beliefs but to question and undermine widely held assumptions. Speeches addressed a wide range of topics, including ethics, astronomy, poverty, and even rats, and sometimes presented controversial or paradoxical views such as the claim that “nothing exists.”

The paper, titled Paradoxes of Common Sense: Epideixis, Antilogy, and Treatises in Classical Greece, was published in the American Journal of Philology on October 11. Napoli explains that these speeches, performed in large venues and private homes, challenged common-sense conclusions and were designed to make listeners reconsider the assumptions they usually take for granted.

Cornell University conducted the research that sheds new light on how ancient Greek public oratory served as a tool for intellectual critique and debate.

Source: Cornell University

Source Type: College

Source Location: Ithaca

Oct 15, 2025 at 2:30 PM

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