How is it possible that modern scholars have labelled Maximus of Tyre, a second-century CE performer of philosophical orations, as a sophist or a ‘half-philosopher’, while his own self-presentation is that of a genuine philosopher? If we take Maximus’ claim to philosophical authority seriously, his case can deepen our understanding of the dynamic nature of Imperial philosophy. Through a discursive analysis of twelve Imperial intellectuals alongside Maximus’ dialexeis, the author proposes an interpretative framework to assess the purpose behind the representation of philosophy, rhetoric, and sophistry in Maximus’ oeuvre. This is thus as yet the first book-length attempt at situating the historical communication process implicit in the surviving Maximean texts in the concurrent context of the Imperial intellectual world.