Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Acknowledgments
- List of abbreviations
- Introduction
- Chapter 1 Philosophical preaching in the Roman world
- Chapter 2 Rhetoric and society: Contexts of public speaking in late antique Antioch
- Chapter 3 John Chrysostom's congregation in Antioch
- Chapter 4 Teaching to the converted: John Chrysostom's pedagogy
- Chapter 5 Practical knowledge and religious life
- Chapter 6 Habits and the Christianization of daily life
- Conclusions
- Bibliography
- Index
Chapter 4 - Teaching to the converted: John Chrysostom's pedagogy
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 22 September 2009
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Acknowledgments
- List of abbreviations
- Introduction
- Chapter 1 Philosophical preaching in the Roman world
- Chapter 2 Rhetoric and society: Contexts of public speaking in late antique Antioch
- Chapter 3 John Chrysostom's congregation in Antioch
- Chapter 4 Teaching to the converted: John Chrysostom's pedagogy
- Chapter 5 Practical knowledge and religious life
- Chapter 6 Habits and the Christianization of daily life
- Conclusions
- Bibliography
- Index
Summary
In the Roman Empire, as in most societies, a formal education was almost always a clear sign of privilege. Schools of grammar and rhetoric provided elite men with basic skills, not least of which was the ability to differentiate themselves from people of lower standing. But this does not mean that people outside these circles were not, in some less recognized way, educated. Some pagans and Christians in Late Antiquity had a wider conception of what counted as education and who could be considered educated. As we have seen, Themistius hoped that his speeches would disseminate philosophical learning to as many people as possible. In the tradition of the Second Sophistic, he used rhetorical skill to make the moral lessons of philosophy more appealing to his audiences in the theaters. Likewise, Libanius could see how ordinary people might learn outside the classroom. He was prepared to argue that watching dance performances was an educational experience, because both rich and poor could watch historical events being acted out. The great tragic poets had once been universal teachers for all the people, but after them, when only the rich had access to education, the gods introduced forms of theatrical dance as a means of instruction for the masses. The result was that “now a goldsmith will competently discuss the houses of Priam and Laius with someone from the schools.”
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Christianization and Communication in Late AntiquityJohn Chrysostom and his Congregation in Antioch, pp. 88 - 117Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2006