Cicero
Marcus Tullius Cicero (106–43 BCE) was a Roman statesman, orator, and philosophical writer whose dialogues adapted Greek ideas for Latin readers.
Epicureanism: A Hellenistic philosophy that identifies pleasure, understood chiefly as freedom from disturbance, as the highest good. Cicero challenges its account of virtue, pleasure, providence, and the gods.
De natura deorum: Cicero’s dialogue examining competing Epicurean, Stoic, and Academic accounts of the gods. Its speakers debate whether divine beings govern the world and deserve human worship.
Marcus Tullius Cicero: A Roman statesman and writer who served as consul in 63 BCE and composed speeches, letters, and philosophical works. His public career gave his philosophical discussions of duty and the republic immediate political stakes.
Roman Republic: The period and political system of ancient Rome before the establishment of imperial rule under Augustus. Cicero wrote amid the republic’s civil conflicts and argued about its institutions and survival.
Ciceronian rhetoric: The style and principles of persuasive public speaking associated with Cicero’s speeches and rhetorical writings. His rhetorical practice demonstrates how philosophical argument could be shaped for civic persuasion.
Stoicism: A Hellenistic philosophy that makes virtue the only true good and teaches life in accordance with reason and nature. Cicero presents Stoic ethics alongside competing schools in his philosophical dialogues.
De finibus bonorum et malorum: Cicero’s dialogue comparing Epicurean, Stoic, and other accounts of the highest good and the worst evil. It directly stages his critique of Epicurean ethics against rival definitions of happiness.
Titus Pomponius Atticus: A Roman knight, publisher, and friend of Cicero who maintained extensive correspondence with him. Cicero dedicated several philosophical works to Atticus and discussed their composition in letters.
Social War (91–87 BC): A conflict in which Rome’s Italian allies rebelled to demand Roman citizenship and political rights. Its aftermath shaped the citizenship and political world in which Cicero began his public career.
Ciceronian Latin: The Latin prose style modeled on Cicero’s vocabulary, syntax, and balanced periods. His writing became a lasting model for Latin expression and philosophical terminology.