Background
Fronton was born in Cirte, the capital of the Numidian kingdom. He refered to himself as a Libyan (that is, a resident of Africa).
(Excerpt from M. Cornelii Frontonis Et M. Aurelii Imperato...)
Excerpt from M. Cornelii Frontonis Et M. Aurelii Imperatoris Epistulae: L. Veri Et T. Antonini Pii Et Appiani Epistularum Reliquiae Quod veterum scriptorum editoribus concedi solet, ut cc piose disserant, quam egregia omnia sint in Opere, quod sus ceperint emendandum vel ornandum, equidem, dum ne prae ter modum id fiat, non reprehendo et aliquid dandum censeo iusto parentum amori, qui liberorum virtutes extollere ament et naevulos aut praetervideant aut dissimulent. Abutan tur licet artificio quodam; at causa honesta est et venia danda erit, si forte perfecerint ut magis innotescant scripto res, quibus patroni obvenerint et elegantes et ingeniosi. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.
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( In 1815 a manuscript containing one of the long-lost tr...)
In 1815 a manuscript containing one of the long-lost treasures of antiquity was discoveredthe letters of Marcus Cornelius Fronto, reputed to have been one of the greatest Roman orators. But this find disappointed many nineteenth-century readers, who had hoped for the letters to convey all of the political drama of Ciceros. That the collection included passionate love letters between Fronto and the future emperor Marcus Aurelius was politely ignoredor concealed. And for almost two hundred years these letters have lain hidden in plain sight. Marcus Aurelius in Love rescues these letters from obscurity and returns them to the public eye. The story of Marcus and Fronto began in 139 CE, when Fronto was selected to instruct Marcus in rhetoric. Marcus was eighteen then and by all appearances the pupil and teacher fell in love. Spanning the years in which the relationship flowered and died, these are the only love letters to survive from antiquityhomoerotic or otherwise. With a translation that reproduces the effusive, slangy style of the young prince and the rhetorical flourishes of his master, the letters between Marcus and Fronto will rightfully be reconsidered as key documents in the study of the history of sexuality and classics.
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( M. Cornelius Fronto was a Roman senator from North Afri...)
M. Cornelius Fronto was a Roman senator from North Africa, and the foremost Latin orator and legal advocate of the mid-second century A.D. Fronto's talent and fame led to his appointment as tutor to Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus, the adoptive sons of the emperor Antoninus Pius, in the late 130s A.D. Fronto's extant correspondence, discovered in the early nineteenth century, consists of around two hundred letters extending over a period of more than twenty-five years, from the late 130s to the mid-160s A.D. In this period, Fronto educated Marcus and Verus in the art of Latin rhetoric, and watched with pride as his illustrious pupils matured and ascended the throne. The correspondence includes letters Fronto exchanged with Marcus and Verus, their father Antoninus Pius, leading senators, and other influential figures at court. This collection features new English translations and commentaries on fifty-four letters from Fronto's correspondence. The letters have been selected for the insights they provide into the political and social history of the Roman empire in the second century A.D., with particular emphasis on court politics and intrigue, the Parthian War, and family relationships among members of the Roman elite. The letters have been arranged in approximate chronological order, enabling the reader to take a journey through Fronto's life over a quarter of a century. The introduction discusses Fronto's life and career, Roman letter writing, the history and character of Fronto's correspondence, and the relationship between Fronto and Marcus Aurelius. It also includes brief biographies of key individuals and family trees. The translation of fifty-four letters with contextual editorial introductions and notes is divided into the following sections: Educating Caesar; Fronto and Herodes; Fronto the Consul; Family Affairs; Politics and Patronage; The Reign of Marcus and Verus; Fronto, Verus and the Parthian War; and Fronto's Grief.
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( The correspondence of Fronto--a much admired orator and...)
The correspondence of Fronto--a much admired orator and rhetorician who was befriended by the emperor Antoninus Pius and teacher of his adopted sons Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus--offers an invaluable picture of aristocratic life and literary culture in the 2nd century. His letters reveal Fronto's strong stylistic views and dislike of Stoicism as well as his family joys and sorrows. They portray the successes and trials of a prominent figure in the palace, literary salons, the Senate, and lawcourts, and they give a fascinating record of the relationship between the foremost teacher of his time and his illustrious student Marcus Aurelius, his chief correspondent. The Loeb Classical Library edition of Fronto is in two volumes.
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advocate grammarian rhetorician
Fronton was born in Cirte, the capital of the Numidian kingdom. He refered to himself as a Libyan (that is, a resident of Africa).
He was educated in Rome.
He came to Rome in the reign of Hadrian, and soon gained such renown as an advocate and orator as to be reckoned inferior only to Cicero. He amassed a large fortune, erected magnificent buildings and purchased the famous gardens of Maecenas. Antoninus Pius, hearing of his fame, appointed him tutor to his adopted sons Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus. In 143 he was consul for two months, but declined the proconsulship of Asia on the ground of ill-health. Fronto's teaching called for the use of Latin instead of artificial speech, which was common among authors of the first century (such as Seneca), and encouraged the use of "sudden and unexpected phrases, " which can be gleaned from authors who wrote before Cicero. He criticized Cicero for not paying attention to detail, although he immensely admired his letters. Presumably, Fronto died in the late 160's in the plague epidemic that followed the Parthian war, but there is no convincing evidence for this. Till 1815 the only extant works ascribed (erroneously) to Fronto were two grammatical treatises, De nominum verborumque differenlus and Exempla elocutionum (the last being really by Arusianus Messius). In that year, however, Angelo Mai discovered in the Ambrosian library at Milan a palimpsest manuscript (and, later, some additional sheets of it in the Vatican), on which had been originally written some of Fronto's letters to his royal pupils and their replies. These palimpsests had originally belonged to the famous convent of St Columba at Bobbio, and had been written over by the monks with the acts of the first council of Chalcedon. The letters, together with the other fragments in the palimpsest, were published at Rome in 1823. Their contents falls far short of the writer's great reputation. The letters consist of correspondence with Antoninus Pius, Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus, in which the character of Fronto's pupils appears in a very favourable light, especially in the affection they both seem to have retained for their old master; and letters to friends, chiefly letters of recommendation. The collection also contains treatises on eloquence, some historical fragments, and literary trifles on such subjects as the praise of smoke and dust, of negligence, and a dissertation on Arion.
His chief merit consists in having preserved extracts from ancient writers which would otherwise have been lost. The best edition of his works is by S. A. Naber (1867), with an account of the palimpsest; see also G. Boissier, " Marc-Aurele et les lettres de F. ," in Revue des deux mondes (April 1868); R. Ellis, in Journal of Philology (1868) and Correspondence of Fronto and M. Aurelius (1904); and the full bibliography in the article by Brzoska in the new edition of Pauly's Realencyclopadie der classischen Altertumswissenschaft, iv. pt. i. (1900).
( The correspondence of Fronto--a much admired orator and...)
( In 1815 a manuscript containing one of the long-lost tr...)
(Excerpt from M. Cornelii Frontonis Et M. Aurelii Imperato...)
( M. Cornelius Fronto was a Roman senator from North Afri...)
His talents as an orator and rhetorician were greatly admired by his contemporaries, a number of whom formed themselves into a school called after him Frontoniani, whose avowed object it was to restore the ancient purity and simplicity of the Latin language in place of the exaggerations of the Greek sophistical school.
Quotes from others about the person
"His style is a laborious mixture of archaisms, a motley cento, with the aid of which he conceals the poverty of his knowledge and ideas. "
His latter years were embittered by the loss of all his children except one daughter.
