ABSTRACT
Greek philosophy was transmitted to Rome as competitive mixture of the Parmenidean-Socratic tradition, and the Gorgias-Isocratic tradition, both of which called themselves "philosophy". Roman higher education follows the Isocratic tradition, focusing on rhetoric and oratory valued for their political usefulness. Although the Isocratic idea of education is most clearly observable in the two most important Roman educational thinkers, Marcus Tullius Cicero and Marcus Fabius Quintilian, the Isocratic legacy to Roman education is also discernible in other Roman educational writings. The aims of Cicero’s educational program are also Isocratic in nature and origin. Wide learning in the liberal arts and in the art of discourse culminate in wisdom and eloquence to be used in the service of the regime. Quintilian's program of formal education begins with grammar, or elementary literary studies. According to Clement, God Himself can be conceived of as an educator, concerned with right living rather than knowledge.
