De republica

About this book

Cicero's De re publica contains the fullest ancient account of the theory of the mixed constitution and the oldest extant narrative of early Roman history; it concludes with the Dream of Scipio, one of the most influential ancient visions of the afterlife. As a Platonic dialogue set in a Roman context, De re publica is in part an examination of Roman attitudes to Greek culture, in part a nostalgic evocation of an earlier and better Rome. The argument of the dialogue concerns the relationship between political theory and practice, and between social institutions and the individual citizen. This edition of most of the surviving portions of De re publica is the most detailed commentary ever to appear in English. It carefully explains Cicero's philosophical argument and its relationship to his account of early Rome, and thoroughly elucidates the language and style of the treatise. The introduction offers a new and provocative interpretation of Cicero's dialogue as a work both of literature and of political philosophy.

Themes & subjects

About the author

Cicero

106 BC – 43 BC

**Marcus Tullius Cicero** (pronounced /ˈsɪsɨroʊ/; Classical Latin: [ˈkikeroː]; January 3, 106 BC – December 7, 43 BC) was a Roman philosopher, statesman, lawyer, political theorist, and Roman 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. He 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. An impressive orator and successful lawyer, Cicero thought that his political career was his mos…