Cicero said that the good orator could arouse in the listener many different feelings: ‘delight, grief, laughter, tears, admiration, hatred, scorn, envy, pity, shame, disgust, anger, relaxation, hope, fear’. But however the orator brought this about, the ancients were aware that there was more to making speeches than just words. The speaker should in a sense be an actor (Greek hupokritês, cf. ‘hypocrite’), using his whole body to reinforce what he was saying. Given the crushing verbal tedium to which the country, day in, day out, is currently being subjected, budding MPs might think about speech as performance.
The professor of rhetoric Quintilian (d. ad 100) gave oddly specific hints about hand movements. At the start of a speech, place the middle finger on the thumb and extend the other three fingers, moving the head and hand gently left and right together.
Get Britain's best politics newsletters
Register to get The Spectator's insight and opinion straight to your inbox. You can then read two free articles each week.
Already a subscriber? Log in
Comments
Join the debate for just £1 a month
Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first three months for £3.
UNLOCK ACCESS Just £1 a monthAlready a subscriber? Log in