62 Jerome H. Neyrey very few (cum paucis) to perform: and to these we must add any other achievements which surpassed hope or expectation (super spem aut expectationem) (Inst. Orat. 3.7.16, emphasis added). His criteria of uniqueness, moreover, are clear and traditional: “only”, “first”, “one of a few” or “surpassing expectation”. If Quintilian articulates the criteria for praise among the Roman elite, Aelius Theon represents this same epideictic tradition in regard to the second level of education (8). His progymnasmata, which contain formal instructions for writing an encomium, domesticates epideictic rhetoric for school purposes. Theon’s importance consists in two facts: (1) he represents a rhetorical tradition which is ancient and consistent over time; and (2) his rules for an encomium indicate that knowledge and practice of the art of praise was widespread and conventional. His contribution is as follows: Praiseworthy actions are also those occurring in a timely manner, and if one acted alone (movno"), or first (prw'to") or when no one acted (oujdeiv"), or more than others (ma'llon tw'n a[llwn), or with a few (met∆ ojlivgwn), or beyond one’s age (uJpe;r hJlikivan), or exceeding expectation (para; ejlpivda), or with hard work, or what was done most easily and quickly (Theon, 9.35-38, emphasis added) (9). The marked terms indicate what Theon understands as grounds for praise, what we call the criterion of uniqueness. It may refer to what is absolutely unique, such as when “one acted alone or first or with a few”. Great praise is also warranted for those who set new personal standards, such as acting “beyond one’s age” or “exceeding expecta- tions”. Finally, certain deeds were greatly admired such as those per- formed effortlessly (“done most easily”) and timely (“quickly”). Finally, in his rhetoric of praise, Menander Rhetor presents a different look at the tradition. His remarks, not so theoretical as those of other rhetoricians, focus on the particular manner of amplifying praise for the gods of a city. ... [W]e have to show that the greatest number (pleivstou") or the best (ajrivstou") of the gods have honoured the city with the greatest (8) R.A. KASTER, “Notes on ‘Primary’ and ‘Secondary’ Schools in Late Antiquity”, TAPA 113 [1983] 323-46; M. BLOOMER, “Schooling in Persona: Imagination and Subordination in Roman Education”, Classical Antiquity 16 [1997] 57-78). (9) J.R. BUTTS, The “Progymnasmata” of Theon. A New Text with Translation and Commentary (unpublished dissertation; Claremont Graduate School, 1987) 470-471.