Cahiers des Études Anciennes (Apr 2023)
Seulement un point de critique textuelle ? παιδείας / παιδιᾶς au paragraphe 246 du Panathénaïque d’Isocrate
Abstract
In Isocrates’ Panathenaicus 246, when a former pupil speaks in an attempt to characterize the oration of the teacher, the manuscript tradition hesitates between two readings which entail very different interpretations (“education” or “playfulness”). Against the massive preference given hitherto to the paideias reading, the present contribution offers several arguments in favor of paidias, leading to the conclusion that the speech of the former pupil is deliberately designed by Isocrates to be at variance with his own positions, and tries to understand the reasons behind such a device.