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
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