Abstract
The origins of rhetoric as speech act were introduced by the sophists of the 5th century b.C., and thereby the political speech already existing in a rough form was refined. The aims of these teachers were much less reprehensible than the philosophical critics would have us believe. They were searching for a Greek identity as most panegyric speakers did, as did the poets before and later on. Only the sophists’ disciples used the rhetorical skills as a means of power, as the historians relate. The missives of Isocrates are texts of fictitious speeches, but they nevertheless show a remarkable lack of oratory because of the political complexity they try to discuss. These questions are not limited to a single polis but need a greater audience addressed by the written text.
