Corax of Syracuse
Encyclopedia
Corax or Korax along with Tisias
, was one of the founders of ancient Greek
rhetoric
. It has sometimes been asserted that they are merely legendary personages. Other scholars contend that Corax and Tisias were the same person, described in one fragment as "Tisias, the Crow" (corax is the ancient Greek
term for "crow
"). Corax is said to have lived in Sicily
in the 5th century BC. During his time, Thrasybulus
, the tyrant of Syracuse
, was overthrown and a democracy formed. Under the despot, the land and property of many common citizens had been seized; these people flooded the courts in an attempt to recover their property. Corax devised an art of rhetoric to permit ordinary men to make their cases in the courts. His chief contribution was in helping structure judicial speeches into various parts: prose, narration, statement of arguments, refutation of opposing arguments, and summary. This structure is the basis for all later rhetorical theory. His pupil, Tisias, is said to have developed legal rhetoric further, and he may have been the teacher of Isocrates
. All we know of the work of Corax is from references made by later writers, such as Plato
, Aristotle
, and Cicero
. According to Dan Harder, Shakespeare derived the name Sycorax
from Corax of Syracuse.
The famous but apocryphal story of how Tisias tried to cheat his teacher is passed down in the introductions to various late rhetorical treatises (e.g. R4 in H. Rabe, Prolegomenon Sylloge, Rhetores Graeci, XIV, Teubner, Leipzig 1931). Tisias got his teacher Corax to agree that he would not pay him his teacher's fee until he won his first lawsuit. He then avoided going to court. Corax got him into court by suing him himself, for the money. He argued that if he, Corax, won the case, he would get his pay, and if he lost, he would still get it because Tisias would have won his first lawsuit, thereby fulfilling the terms of their agreement. Tisias, some versions say, retorted that if he, Tisias, lost the case, he would escape under the terms of the agreement, having lost, not won, his first lawsuit, and if he won it he should also be free, since he would be awarded the money at issue. The judge is said to have thrown both of them out of court, remarking, "kakou korakos kakon oon," "a bad egg from a bad crow" (Suda, #171 under "K").
Tisias
Tisias , along with Corax of Syracuse, was one of the founders of ancient Greek rhetoric, or sophism. Tisias was reputed to have been the pupil of the lawyer Corax, who agreed to teach Tisias under the condition that he would give him payment for schooling if he won his first case...
, was one of the founders of ancient Greek
Ancient Greece
Ancient Greece is a civilization belonging to a period of Greek history that lasted from the Archaic period of the 8th to 6th centuries BC to the end of antiquity. Immediately following this period was the beginning of the Early Middle Ages and the Byzantine era. Included in Ancient Greece is the...
rhetoric
Rhetoric
Rhetoric is the art of discourse, an art that aims to improve the facility of speakers or writers who attempt to inform, persuade, or motivate particular audiences in specific situations. As a subject of formal study and a productive civic practice, rhetoric has played a central role in the Western...
. It has sometimes been asserted that they are merely legendary personages. Other scholars contend that Corax and Tisias were the same person, described in one fragment as "Tisias, the Crow" (corax is the ancient Greek
Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek is the stage of the Greek language in the periods spanning the times c. 9th–6th centuries BC, , c. 5th–4th centuries BC , and the c. 3rd century BC – 6th century AD of ancient Greece and the ancient world; being predated in the 2nd millennium BC by Mycenaean Greek...
term for "crow
Crow
Crows form the genus Corvus in the family Corvidae. Ranging in size from the relatively small pigeon-size jackdaws to the Common Raven of the Holarctic region and Thick-billed Raven of the highlands of Ethiopia, the 40 or so members of this genus occur on all temperate continents and several...
"). Corax is said to have lived in Sicily
Sicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
in the 5th century BC. During his time, Thrasybulus
Thrasybulus
Thrasybulus was an Athenian general and democratic leader. In 411 BC, in the wake of an oligarchic coup at Athens, the pro-democracy sailors at Samos elected him as a general, making him a primary leader of the successful democratic resistance to that coup...
, the tyrant of Syracuse
Syracuse, Italy
Syracuse is a historic city in Sicily, the capital of the province of Syracuse. The city is notable for its rich Greek history, culture, amphitheatres, architecture, and as the birthplace of the preeminent mathematician and engineer Archimedes. This 2,700-year-old city played a key role in...
, was overthrown and a democracy formed. Under the despot, the land and property of many common citizens had been seized; these people flooded the courts in an attempt to recover their property. Corax devised an art of rhetoric to permit ordinary men to make their cases in the courts. His chief contribution was in helping structure judicial speeches into various parts: prose, narration, statement of arguments, refutation of opposing arguments, and summary. This structure is the basis for all later rhetorical theory. His pupil, Tisias, is said to have developed legal rhetoric further, and he may have been the teacher of Isocrates
Isocrates
Isocrates , an ancient Greek rhetorician, was one of the ten Attic orators. In his time, he was probably the most influential rhetorician in Greece and made many contributions to rhetoric and education through his teaching and written works....
. All we know of the work of Corax is from references made by later writers, such as Plato
Plato
Plato , was a Classical Greek philosopher, mathematician, student of Socrates, writer of philosophical dialogues, and founder of the Academy in Athens, the first institution of higher learning in the Western world. Along with his mentor, Socrates, and his student, Aristotle, Plato helped to lay the...
, Aristotle
Aristotle
Aristotle was a Greek philosopher and polymath, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. His writings cover many subjects, including physics, metaphysics, poetry, theater, music, logic, rhetoric, linguistics, politics, government, ethics, biology, and zoology...
, and Cicero
Cicero
Marcus Tullius Cicero , was a Roman philosopher, statesman, lawyer, political theorist, and Roman constitutionalist. He came from a wealthy municipal family of the equestrian order, and is widely considered one of Rome's greatest orators and prose stylists.He introduced the Romans to the chief...
. According to Dan Harder, Shakespeare derived the name Sycorax
Sycorax
Sycorax is a character mentioned though not seen in William Shakespeare's play The Tempest.Sycorax may also refer to:*Sycorax , a moon of Uranus, named after the fictional character...
from Corax of Syracuse.
The famous but apocryphal story of how Tisias tried to cheat his teacher is passed down in the introductions to various late rhetorical treatises (e.g. R4 in H. Rabe, Prolegomenon Sylloge, Rhetores Graeci, XIV, Teubner, Leipzig 1931). Tisias got his teacher Corax to agree that he would not pay him his teacher's fee until he won his first lawsuit. He then avoided going to court. Corax got him into court by suing him himself, for the money. He argued that if he, Corax, won the case, he would get his pay, and if he lost, he would still get it because Tisias would have won his first lawsuit, thereby fulfilling the terms of their agreement. Tisias, some versions say, retorted that if he, Tisias, lost the case, he would escape under the terms of the agreement, having lost, not won, his first lawsuit, and if he won it he should also be free, since he would be awarded the money at issue. The judge is said to have thrown both of them out of court, remarking, "kakou korakos kakon oon," "a bad egg from a bad crow" (Suda, #171 under "K").