I. EMPEDOCLES
(Vide praeterea A V 1 sq.)
1. Diog. Laert. VIII 57: Ἀριστοτέλης δὲ ἐν τῷ Σοφιστῇ (fr. 65) φησι πρῶτον Ἐμπεδοκλέα ῥητορικὴν εὑρεῖν.
Cf. supra p. 13. Pergit Diogenes ἐν δὲ τῷ περὶ ποιητῶν φησιν, ὅτι καὶ ὁμηρικὸς ὁ Ἐμπεδοκλῆς καὶ δεινὸς περὶ τὴν φράσιν γέγονε, μεταφορικός τε ὢν καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις τοῖς περὶ ποιητικὴν ἐπιτεύγμασι χρώμενος. Futtilia sunt, quae Georgius Pletho de Empedoclis rhetorica narrat Rhet. Gr. W VI 587.9 sq., sed fabulosae huius historiae initia iam apud Satyrum conspiciuntur: Diog Laert. 8.58 φησὶ δὲ Σάτυρος ἐν τοῖς βίοις, ὅτι καὶ ἰατρὸς ἦν καὶ ῥήτωρ ἄριστος. Γοργίαν γοῦν τὸν Λεοντῖνον αὐτοῦ γενέσθαι μαθητήν, v. infra B VII 2.
I. EMPEDOCLES
(see also A V 1ff.)
1. Diogenes Laertius 8.57: Aristotle in the Sophist [fr. 65] says that Empedocles was the first to invent rhetoric.
See above, p. 13. Diogenes continues as follows: ‘In his book about poets he writes that Empedocles was Homer-like and very good at phrasing things, as he uses metaphors and all the others advantages of poetic diction.’ What Georgius Pletho recounts about Empedocles’s rhetoric (Rhet. Gr. W VI 587.9 f.) is worthless; however, we already see the beginning of those fanciful tales in Satyrus: Diog Laert. 8.58: ‘Satyrus writes in his Vitae that he was also the best physician and orator, and that Gorgias of Leontini was his pupil. See below, B VII 2.