Cypriano Soarez y Herrera, S.J. (1524–1593) was a sixteenth-century

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: ** Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Ca ...

Jesuit who wrote ''De Arte Rhetorica'', the first Jesuit rhetoric textbook.The De Arte Rhetorica (1568) by Cyprian Soarez, S.J.: A Translation with Introduction and Notes. Diss. University of Florida, 1955. Ann Arbor: UMI: 2001.

Life

Soarez was born in Ocaña in the

Kingdom of Toledo The Kingdom of Toledo ( es, Reino de Toledo) was a realm in the central Iberian Peninsula, created after the capture of Toledo by Alfonso VI of León in 1085. It continued in existence until 1833; its region is currently within Spain. Backg ...

. His mother was Lady Francesca de Hererra and Soarez had

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heritage. He joined the

Jesuit order , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders = ...

in Portugal on September 21, 1549 with the support of

Fray Luis de Granada Louis of Granada, OP (1504 – 31 December 1588), was a Dominican friar who was noted as theologian, writer and preacher. The cause for his canonization has been long open with the Holy See, with his current status being Venerable. Biography ...

. He taught rhetoric in Jesuit schools, including the College of Saint Anthony in Lisbon and the Royal College of Coimbra. In Coimbra, he also served as a cook, porter, and sweeper. Emmanuel Alvarez, who would later write the first Jesuit Latin grammar handbook (''De institutio grammatica libri tres''), also worked with Soarez. He attained the office of Prefect of Studies in the College of Arts. Later, he attained the degree of

doctor of theology Doctor of Theology ( la, Doctor Theologiae, abbreviated DTh, ThD, DTheol, or Dr. theol.) is a terminal degree in the academic discipline of theology. The ThD, like the ecclesiastical Doctor of Sacred Theology, is an advanced research degree equiva ...

at the Jesuit College of Evora, and became rector in the College of Braga. In 1580, he moved to

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. With

Francisco Suarez Francisco is the Spanish and Portuguese form of the masculine given name ''Franciscus''. Nicknames In Spanish, people with the name Francisco are sometimes nicknamed " Paco". San Francisco de Asís was known as ''Pater Comunitatis'' (father of ...

, Soarez was appointed to the committee to offer feedback on the Society's developing ''

Ratio studiorum The ''Ratio atque Institutio Studiorum Societatis Iesu'' (''Method and System of the Studies of the Society of Jesus''), often abbreviated as ''Ratio Studiorum'' (Latin: ''Plan of Studies''), was a document that standardized the globally influen ...

.'' He later died in Placentia.

Works

Concerned that young students in Jesuit colleges were not ready for major rhetorical texts such as

Aristotle Aristotle (; grc-gre, Ἀριστοτέλης ''Aristotélēs'', ; 384–322 BC) was a Greek philosopher and polymath during the Classical Greece, Classical period in Ancient Greece. Taught by Plato, he was the founder of the Peripatet ...

's ''

Rhetoric Rhetoric () is the art of persuasion, which along with grammar and logic (or dialectic), is one of the three ancient arts of discourse. Rhetoric aims to study the techniques writers or speakers utilize to inform, persuade, or motivate par ...

'', Cicero's ''

De Oratore ''De Oratore'' (''On the Orator''; not to be confused with '' Orator'') is a dialogue written by Cicero in 55 BC. It is set in 91 BC, when Lucius Licinius Crassus dies, just before the Social War and the civil war between Marius and Sulla, d ...

'', and

Quintilian Marcus Fabius Quintilianus (; 35 – 100 AD) was a Roman educator and rhetorician from Hispania, widely referred to in medieval schools of rhetoric and in Renaissance writing. In English translation, he is usually referred to as Quintili ...

's ''

Institutio Oratoria ''Institutio Oratoria'' ( English: Institutes of Oratory) is a twelve-volume textbook on the theory and practice of rhetoric by Roman rhetorician Quintilian. It was published around year 95 AD. The work deals also with the foundational education ...

'', Soarez wrote ''De arte rhetorica'' as digest of their work as an introduction for students still learning Latin. Soarez wrote the first draft of the work around 1562; it was revised by fellow Jesuit

Pedro Juan Pepinyá Pedro Juan Pepinyá, S.J. (1530 - October 28, 1566) was a Spanish Jesuit humanist who contributed to the development of the Jesuit '' Cursus Conimbricensis'' commentaries on Aristotle and who revised Cypriano Soarez' ''De arte rhetorica.'' Lif ...

in about 1565. The ''De arte rhetorica'' (1568) was organized in Aristotelian form but borrowed its content heavily from Cicero. Soarez intended the ''De arte'' ''rhetorica'' as an introductory digest that would introduce students to the principles of rhetoric and oratory; though students had learned Latin grammar, he found that they were not guaranteed to have facility reading “Quintilian, Cicero, Virgil, Sallust, and the other authors." The ''De arte rhetorica'' went through more than 75 printings from 1460 to 1700. This included printings in Mexico City. The Jesuit ''

Ratio Studiorum The ''Ratio atque Institutio Studiorum Societatis Iesu'' (''Method and System of the Studies of the Society of Jesus''), often abbreviated as ''Ratio Studiorum'' (Latin: ''Plan of Studies''), was a document that standardized the globally influen ...

'' maked Soarez' ''De arte rhetorica'' the required rhetoric handbook in the second semester of the Humanities course for students at Jesuit colleges all over the world.

References

Bibliography

* Flynn, Lawrence J., S.J. "The De Arte Rhetorica of Cyprian Soarez, S.J." ''Quarterly Journal of Speech'', 42 (1956): 367-74. Print. * Flynn, Lawrence J., S.J. "Sources and Influence of Soarez’ De Arte Rhetorica." ''Quarterly Journal of Speech'', 43 (1957): 257-65. Print. * Flynn, Lawrence J., S.J. ''The De Arte Rhetorica (1568) by Cyprian Soarez, S.J.'' A Translation with Introduction and Notes. Diss. University of Florida, 1955. Ann Arbor: UMI: 2001. Print. {{DEFAULTSORT:Soarez, Cypriano De 1524 births 16th-century Spanish Jesuits 1593 deaths Rhetoric theorists Spanish Renaissance humanists 16th-century male writers Trope theorists