Demosthenes' speech On the Crown (330 B.C.E.), in which the master orator spectacularly defended his public career, has long been recognized as a masterpiece. The speech has been in continuous circulation from Demosthenes' lifetime to the present day, and multiple generations have acclaimed it as the greatest speech ever written. In addition to a clear and accessible translation, Demosthenes'"On the Crown" Rhetorical Perspectives includes eight essays that provide a thorough analysis--based on Aristotelian principles--of Demosthenes' superb rhetoric.

The...