Inner voices exposed: Fictitious therapeutic dialogues in Augustine’s Sermones ad populum

Abstract

The therapeutic intentions of Augustine’s preaching have recently been noted by scholars who have focused on how the cures of varying states of emotions are discussed in the sermons. One of the techniques used in this task was sermocinatio, or fictitious dialogue between different characters during the sermon. In this article, I will discuss three different cases in which Augustine makes use of this traditional rhetorical device in voicing out varying reactions and inner responses to ethical instructions on forgiveness, greed and fear. As in other contexts of the fictitious dialogues in Augustine’s sermons, the preacher regularly attempts to answer these voices with the living, authoritative voice of Scripture, thus confronting his hearers with a directly personal and divine address. The aim of this address is to offer functional and habitual therapy for common forms of temptations in Augustine’s audience. The entertainment value of these dialogues is designed to make them persuasive and easy to remember in actual instances of mala cogitatio.