The Rhetoric of Imperial Felicitas as a Political Tool in Late Antiquity

Authors

Martin Shedd, Fairfield UniversityFollow

DOI

https://doi.org/10.52284/NECJ.52.2.article.shedd

Publication Date

12-15-2025

Abstract

This article surveys the rhetoric of imperial felicitas (good luck) in Latin literature of the fourth and early fifth centuries in response to Erik Wistrand’s monograph Felicitas Imperatoria (1987). By including not only the emperor’s fortunes, but also the fortunes of the political community directly attributed to his presence or actions in its definition, it presents a more complete analysis of relevant political rhetoric. It demonstrates that the tropes of panegyric were manipulated by petitioners to facilitate political action. Finally, it concludes that the author of Historia Augusta intentionally subverts these tropes to envision a different political system for Rome.

First Page

6

Last Page

24

Recommended Citation

Shedd, Martin (2025) "The Rhetoric of Imperial Felicitas as a Political Tool in Late Antiquity," New England Classical Journal: Vol. 52 : Iss. 2 , 6-24.

https://doi.org/10.52284/NECJ.52.2.article.shedd

Keywords

felicitas, Constantine, Historia Augusta, historiography, imperialism, panegyric, rhetoric, Symmachus