Keywords
Pliny the Elder
Natural history
Arts
Rhetoric
How to Cite
Abstract
This article aims to investigate, through the concept of poikilía, or variety, how the arts – primarily addressed in volumes 34 to 36 of Pliny the Elder’s Natural History – relate to the rhetorical style employed by the author, that is how structure and content are linked with one another. We will explore two particular features of this type of diversity: firstly, the notion of variety as a characteristic assigned to objects or artistic techniques, as well as to the materials used in their execution; and secondly, variety in terms of the rhetorical devices employed throughout those volumes. Therefore, we will revisit the definition of poikilía in the context of the arts and poetry, and examine how the notion of variegation applies to rhetoric, ultimately being reflected in the Natural History.
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