Cicero

M. Tullius Cicero

• Greatest literary figure of Late Republic
  • Many speeches preserved
    • Mainly for the defense
    • A few deliberative speeches
      • Urging the People to pass or reject laws
      • Arguing for action in the senate
  • Letters give detailed information from knowledgeable contemporary
  • Both written to others and to him
  • Hundreds of letters to his friends Atticus, as wealthy equestrian, give his "unvarnished" views
  • When discovered in the Renaissance, these letters somewhat tarnished his reputation, as they are sometimes at variance with what he says in the speeches
• Somewhat of a fickle man
  • Associated himself with the senatorial oligarchy
  • Lacked much in the way of principle, willing to sacrifice principle to utility
• Prone to "blowing own horn"
  • non sine causa sed sine fine
  • This okay by ancient standards, uncongenial to mod. ones
  • Considered a wit in own day
    • Admired by the urbani (youthful "in" crowd of '50s)
• Reached highest office b/c of oratorical skills
  • Elected to every office in earliest year possible
• "New man" (from same town as Marius)
  Member of local ruling family
  • Distant relation of Marius
  • Never plays up this connection in running for ussice
  • Took Sulla's side in civil war
• Made a name for himself in 80BC by defending a man falsely accused of murder to get his money during the proscriptions
  • Managed to attack Sulla's influential freedman without insulting Sulla himself
• Verres case
  • Verres was particularly greedy gov. of Sicily 73-70 BC
  • Cicero asked to prosecute by Sicilians (he'd been quaestor there)
  • Verres hoped to get off through senatorial connections
    • Stole 40,000,000 sesterces (first years' theft for friends, second year's for jurors, third year's for self).
  • Defended by L. Hortensius Hortalus cos. 69 (greatest orator at the time)
  • Cicero made such a damning speech that Verres went into exile without awaiting outcome of case
  • Cicero now considered greatest orator
• In 66 gave surviving speech in favor of Pompey beign given command in war against Mithridates
• As consul in 63 he forced Catiline to throw in his lot with rural rebels
  • L. Cornelius Catilina disreputable patrician associate of Sulla
• Suppresses hare-brained conspiracy of associates of Catiline
  • Hurried executions b/c of fear Pompey would use civil discord as excuse to become dictator
• Cicero exiled by hostile tribune in 58 b/c of executions, recalled next year