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[ SOLD OUT ] QUACQUARELLI, A., La retorica antica al bivio. (L'Ad Nigrinum e l'Ad Donatum). Edizioni Scientifiche Romane, Roma, n.d.(>1956). 215p. Sewn. Cardboard. Cover a bit grimy. 'Quacquarelli's book has an important theme. Ancient Rhetoric was no mere guide to speech-making, but an educational content inculcated an outlook on life. But it did not answer ultimate questions, and some, starting as rhetoricians, turned elsewhere for the solution of spiritual problems. Lucian's 'Nigrinus' records the impact of a high-minded philospher on a rhetorician, but the 'convert', nowhere finding virtue prectised by those who preached it, became disillusioned and sceptical. The second half of Quacquarelli's book deals with the 'ad Donatum'of cyprian, a rhetorician turned Christian. Quacquarelli's attempt to see pagan and Christian of the second and third centuries agains the common background of a rhetoric-obsessed culture is commendable. Based on wide-reading, his study is often suggestive and thought-provoking. (...) Though the book is intended to have unity, its two halves (...) are quite different in approach. With Cyprian the emphasis is on his adaptation of rhetorical, especially declamatory, techniques and themes to Christian apologetics in 'ad Doantum', though Quacquarelli also analyses Cyprian's 'humanistic', i.e. not scriptural nor dogamtic, attitude in this early work. Though disproportiante space is devoted to a complete transcription of 'ad Donatum' divided into rhytmical units, these sections are straightforward and interesting. But with 'Nigrinus' we are concerned chiefly with the substance of the work and Lucian's subsequent spiritual adventures. ... Quacquarelli's real concern is clearly to demonstrate the superiority of Christianity over the moralisitic pagen philosophy of Lucian's day.' (A.E. DOUGLAS in The Classical Review (New Series), 1958, p.86). From the library of Prof. Carl Deroux. (Antiquarian) (approx. delivery time: undeliverable)