Monday, May 28, 2007

Epideictic or Panegyric (def.)

Main Entry: pan·e·gy·ric
Function: noun
Pronunciation: "pa-n&-'jir-ik, -'jī-rik
Etymology: Latin panegyricus, from Greek panegyrikos, from panegyrikos of or for a festival assembly, from panegyris festival assembly, from pan- + agyris assembly; akin to Greek ageirein to gather
: a eulogistic oration or writing ; also : formal or elaborate praise
synonym see ENCOMIUM
- pan·e·gy·ri·cal/-'jir-i-k&l, -'jī-ri-/ adjective
- pan·e·gy·ri·cal·ly/-k(&-)le/ adverb

from Richard A. Lanham, A Handlist of Rhetorical Terms, 2nd ed., 1991.

... And isn't "praising" a category different in kind from "legal" and "judicial," which have to do with particular arenas and social purposes? To correspond to them, it ought to be "domestic," or "private" ... . The self-pleasing aspects of rhetorical performance have tended to cluster in this category ...

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