Marcus Porcius Latro (died 4 BC) was a celebrated Roman rhetorician who is considered one of the founders of scholastic rhetoric.
[1] He was born in Roman Spain, and is mentioned often in the works of his friend and contemporary Seneca the Elder, with whom he studied under Marillius.
Latro is said to have possessed an astonishing memory, and displayed the greatest energy and vehemence, not only in declamation, but also in his studies and other pursuits.
He would study constantly and work himself to the point of exhaustion, after which he would restore himself with a holiday in Tuscany of hunting and farming, during which he never touched a book or pen.
[3] But great as was the reputation of Latro, he did not escape severe criticism on the part of his contemporaries: his language was censured by Messalla, and the arrangement of his orations by other rhetoricians.