On Duties

About this curriculum

From the publisher: Marcus Tullius Cicero (106–43 BC) was a preeminent Roman statesman, orator, and philosopher who introduced philosophy into Rome, and through Rome, into Christendom and the modern world. He lived through the stirring era that saw the rise, dictatorship, and death of Julius Caesar in a tottering republic. In his political speeches especially, and in his correspondence, we see the excitement, tension and intrigue of politics and the part he played in the turmoil of the time. Cicero's On Duties has been championed throughout history by important thinkers including Thomas Aquinas, Montesquieu, and Voltaire, and it was one of the earliest books printed on the Gutenberg Press. The true significance of On Duties lies in its examination of several fundamental problems of political philosophy, the most important being the possible conflict between the honorable and the useful. The honorable encompasses the virtues of human beings, which include justice and concern for the common good. The useful refers to the needs of living beings, which includes certain necessities and concern for private good…