Quintilian was born in Calagurris, Spain in 35 A.D. to a Roman rhetorician. His father took him to Rome to be educated in the art of rhetoric. While in Rome, Quintilian was educated by such rhetoricians as Remmius Palaemon, Domitius and Afer. After his education was complete, he returned to Spain to practice law and teach rhetorical skills. In 68 A.D. he was brought back to Rome by the Emperor to run the State School of Oratory. He became the first rhetorician to set up a truly public school, and to receive a state salary. He was also the only rhetorician to receive an imperial grant. As a teacher of rhetoric, Quintilian's students included Tacitus, the younger Pliny, the two sons of Domitilla, and the sister of Domitian. Quintilian taught rhetoric for twenty years before he retired at age 50. After finished with teaching, he was asked by several of his friends, mainly Trypho, to publish a book on rhetorical pedagogy. The book he wrote was Institutio Oratorio, and is the only work of his to survive to this day. He published only two other works, on being a speech in defense of a suspected murderer, and the other a treatise entitled On the Decadence of Roman Oratory.
Quintilian differed from Cicero in that he saw no value in philosophy. He felt that philosophers were remote from the lives of the common man. He argued that we don't need philosophy to learn goodness nor to learn how to make good judgements. Quintilian emphasized high moral purpose and rhetorical skill. For him, then, "goodness" is the essence of good rhetoric which he defines as "a good man speaking well." For Quintilian, goodness was equivalent to excellent character.
Quintilian was obsessed with this idea of goodness as a result of an event known as the "Year of the four Emperors" (69 AD) during which time bloodshed and moral depravity were the norm on Roman streets.
Quintilian argued for a "practical wisdom" the kind which helps us conduct our life morally. He argues that rules don't make a person a good rhetor because circumstances may change the rules. Instead, Quintilian argues that four skills lead to good rhetoric:
He holds that the hallmarks of intelligence are:
Quintilian supported declamation, a rhetorical exercise, which took two forms:
Thus, through Quintilian, rhetoric becomes more and more a part of a standard education.
For Quintilian, the object of rhetoric is to state that which is both good and true; virtuous, courageous, efficient, and eloquent. He also argues that these are the hallmarks of a good speaker and a good statesman.