Certamen Oratorum
The Duel
Two speeches enter the forum. The eight Ciceronian dimensions decide. Choose your combatants from the Hall of Orators.
Contestant Aureus · gold
Contestant Rubeus · rouge
Sponsio · Place Your Wager
Predict the duel before the gods rule.
Pick the victor, then score each speech on the eight Ciceronian criteria (0–10). The actual verdict — radar, table, and final Cicero Score — stays sealed until you submit.
Patrick Henry · 1775
Give Me Liberty, or Give Me Death
"I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty, or give me death!"
Demosthenes · 330 BC
On the Crown
"I have been preserved to you, men of Athens, by no skill of my own, but by the gods, and by your goodwill."
Your Victor
| Criterion | Henry | Demosthenes |
|---|---|---|
Ethos Appeal through the speaker's character, credibility, and moral authority. | 5.0 | 5.0 |
Logos Appeal through reasoned argument, evidence, and logical structure. | 5.0 | 5.0 |
Pathos Appeal through the emotions of the audience. | 5.0 | 5.0 |
Anaphora Repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses. | 5.0 | 5.0 |
Periodic Structure Suspended sentence whose meaning is completed only at its close. | 5.0 | 5.0 |
Antithesis Juxtaposition of contrasting ideas in balanced phrases. | 5.0 | 5.0 |
Amplificatio Heightening of subject matter through accumulation and intensification. | 5.0 | 5.0 |
Civic Virtue Appeals to the res publica, duty, and shared political life. | 5.0 | 5.0 |
Pick a victor first.