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The Carcer in Roman Declamation: Formation and Function of a Topos

Abstract:Prison scenes recur throughout the corpus of Latin declamatory texts (Seneca, Calpurnius Flaccus, Pseudo-Quintilian). After outlining the main features and variants of this topos, this article discusses its genesis and development. The form declamatory carceres take is determined both by important literary models and by a dynamic of imitation inherent to declamatory discourse. Taking the designation of the carcer as an exemplum as its point of departure, this article proceeds to explore different approaches—persuasive, meta-rhetorical, and sociological—to the function of this common declamatory image.