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| Cicero |
QUOTE: A war is never undertaken by the ideal State, except in
defense of its honor or its safety. [De Re Publica, Book 3, Chapter 22]
AUTHOR: Cicero A.K.A Marcus Tullius Cicero (3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC;
sometimes anglicized as Tully) was a Roman philosopher, statesman, lawyer,
orator, political theorist, consul and constitutionalist. He came from a
wealthy municipal family of the equestrian order, and is widely considered one
of Rome's greatest orators and prose stylists.
His influence on the
Latin language was so immense that the subsequent history of prose in not only
Latin but European languages up to the 19th century was said to be either a
reaction against or a return to his style. According to Michael Grant,
"the influence of Cicero upon the history of European literature and ideas
greatly exceeds that of any other prose writer in any language". Cicero
introduced the Romans to the chief schools of Greek philosophy and created a
Latin philosophical vocabulary (with neologisms such as humanitas, qualitas,
quantitas, and essentia) distinguishing himself as a linguist,
translator, and philosopher.
Petrarch's
rediscovery of Cicero's letters is often credited for initiating the
14th-century Renaissance in public affairs, humanism, and classical Roman
culture. According to Polish historian Tadeusz Zieliński, "Renaissance was
above all things a revival of Cicero, and only after him and through him of the
rest of Classical antiquity." The peak of Cicero's authority and prestige
came during the eighteenth-century Enlightenment, and his impact on leading
Enlightenment thinkers such as John Locke, David Hume, and Montesquieu was
substantial. His works rank among the most influential in European culture, and
today still constitute one of the most important bodies of primary material for
the writing and revision of Roman history, especially the last days of the
Roman Republic.
Though he was an
accomplished orator and successful lawyer, Cicero believed his political career
was his most important achievement. It was during his consulship that the
Second Catilinarian Conspiracy attempted the government overthrow through an
attack on the city from outside forces, and Cicero suppressed the revolt by
executing five conspirators without due process. During the chaotic latter half
of the 1st century BC marked by civil wars and the dictatorship of Gaius Julius
Caesar, Cicero championed a return to the traditional republican government.
Following Julius Caesar's death Cicero became an enemy of Mark Antony in the
ensuing power struggle, attacking him in a series of speeches. He was
proscribed as an enemy of the state by the Second Triumvirate and subsequently
murdered in 43 BC.
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