Stylistic terminology in the Praeparatio sophistica

Despite its heavily abbreviated state, the PS as transmitted by cod. Par. Coisl. 345 still preserves a sufficiently varied range of evaluative terminology to allow it to be classified not simply as an Atticist lexicon, but more specifically as one focused on stylistic theorisation and aimed at providing its readers with a rich selection of notable Classical expressions with which to nuance their stylistic palette. This paper collects and discusses the range of evaluative terminology that can be reconstructed for the PS on the basis of both the Coislinianus and the entries in the indirect witnesses that certainly date back to the PS or that have been attributed to the PS on the basis of the doctrine they express. The evidence is divided into three subgroups: (1) Atticist (i.e. prescriptive) terminology; (2) general stylistic terminology; (3) terminology that refers to a specific literary genre, or linguistic register. In addressing the second and third groups, I shall attempt to situate Phrynichus’ terminology within Greek stylistic thought, paying particular attention to the contemporary theorisation of Hermogenes’ On Types of Style. The final part of the paper focuses on the elusive category of τὸ πολιτικόν in the PS and assess to what extent we can see in Phrynichus’ use of this category an adherence to the extensive theoretical discussion of the πολιτικὸς λόγος in Greek manuals of style.