I believe that natural talent was such a popular discussion during the Classical Period because it was perceived that people were born into a certain social class or born with a certain amount of virtue. Therefore many people in the Classical Period would have believed that people are born with certain talents and or skills rather than learning/acquiring  them. I think that we find discussions of natural talent more in athletics rather than academics today because of the study of genetics. Some people have a natural gift or ability in a certain sport or physical event and that is easy to see because everyone else is able to see them compete in this sport or activity. I believe that people are born with the same scholarly talents but it is harder to see because we cannot see what people are thinking.