Eric Liu was the speechwriter for Bill Clinton, Ted Sorensen was a speechwriter and aide to John F. Kennedy, and Peggy Noonan became a famous speechwriter during Reagan/Bush era. These individuals made a famous living by writing speeches for some of the post powerful men in American history. Their speeches provided comfort to the anxious, hope to the despairing, and freedom to the confined. "Greece, for example, and especially Athens, could be called the birthplace of the orator (Synoptic, 182)." For it was here, during the first period of the Sophistical movement, that the philosopher, Prodicus, became one of the first professional speechwriters of all time.
Prodicus, born in Ceos, was a Greek humanist, sent to Athens as an ambassador. It was here that he became a well known speaker and teacher. He was contemporary with Democritus and Gorgias, while being discipled by Protagoras (where he was trained for domestic and civic affairs). Unlike Protagoras's use of rhetoric and style as his chief instruments in education, Prodicus made ethics prominent in his curriculum. He was a pessimist, emphasizing the sorrows of life and advocating no hope less resignation (Alexandros). He went as far as to say that "such are the evils of this life that death is a desirable alternative (Alexandros)." Combining public service with personal profit, he employed his credit with his Athenian hosts to build up a thriving trade in lecturing and teaching for large fees while on his official visits. "He, as well as Hippias, could go into every one of the cities and persuade young men to leave their companions and join their own circle, paying a fee for the chance to do so and thanking them into the bargain (White, 56)." .
Prodicus was famous for his contributions to the philosophy of religion (Barrett). He was usually ranked as an atheist, which helped explain the wide-spread inaccurate information about him being put to death for corrupting the youth of Athens.
