Facilitas and héxis in Latin rhetoric

The concept of ἕξις is the starting point for the tenth book of Quintilian’s Institutio oratoria. This concept had its origins in the philosophical field in the works by Plato and Aristotle but was also used by many other Greek and Latin authors. In my paper, I analyse some crucial moments in the history of this term in Greek and study its Latin translations (habitus, facultas, facilitas). In particular, my focus is on its use in the rhetorical field from Cicero to Tacitus, with specific attention to Quintilian, and on its meaning of facility of expression.