Abstract

Famiano Strada (1572-1649) was a Jesuit historian and writer who played an essential role in the Counter-Reformation period. This paper examines the representation of the perfect orator in the first book of his Prolusiones academicae, published in 1617 by Giacomo Mascardi in Rome. My primary focus is on the relationship between rhetoric and philosophy because the author drew inspiration from the works of Plato and Aristotle. Moreover, this article aims to shed light on further topics of interest, for example the importance of memory for the orator, the relationship between memory and intelligence, and the knowledge of various cultural fields. It is worth pointing out the author’s knowledge of ancient sources, which include not only Plato and Aristotle, but also Latin literature, in particular Cicero and Quintilian.