Libertination and Trustworthiness in Cicero's Correspondence

• Autores: Kristof Vermote
• Localización: Latomus: revue d'études latines, ISSN 0023-8856, Vol. 79, Nº. 2, 2020, págs. 398-421
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • This article provides an original contribution to the ongoing debate on the social roles of Roman freedmen by examining the performativity of libertination – the explicit reference to an agent by the term libertus – in the epistolary networking of Cicero and his correspondents. Because many ex-slaves were counted among the elite’s most confidential personnel, the discursive use of libertination established a paratextual aura of trustworthiness that smoothed potentially delicate interactions. Contrary to previous studies that consider libertination mainly as a stratifying or even stigmatising label (accentuating an inferior legal status), this contribution suggests that it was, at least in epistolary discourse, a valuable asset readily resorted to by letter writers who were looking for ways to present their messages as reliable representations of their own thoughts and opinions.