Today we share the writings of Marcus Tullius Cicero (106 BCE – 43 BCE) from his works ‘On The Republic’, which was written between 54 BCE – 51 BCE, and ‘On Duties’, which was written in 44 BCE. An accomplished poet, philosopher, politician, rhetorician, and lawyer, Cicero was the greatest forensic orator ancient Rome ever produced.
Importantly, Cicero adapted the arguments of the chief schools of Hellenistic philosophy into Latin and created a large volume of Latin philosophical vocabulary via lexical innovation. A substantial percentage of his work survived, and Petrarch’s 14th-century rediscovery of Cicero’s letters (more than 900 letters of which more than 800 were written by Cicero and nearly 100 by others to him) is often credited as the catalyst for the Renaissance that occurred in public affairs, humanism, and classical Roman culture. Cicero’s works also influenced leading 18th-century Enlightenment thinkers and political theorists such as John Lock and David Hume.
Quotes From The Works Of Cicero
Quotes are organized by topics and excerpted from:
– The Loeb Classical Library edition of ‘Cicero: On The Republic, On The Laws’, published by Harvard University Press in 2006 and translated by Clinton W. Keyes.
– The Loeb Classical Library edition of ‘Cicero: On Duties’, published by Harvard University Press in 2006 and translated by Walter Miller.
Autonomy
“… the most marked difference between man and beast is this… man – because he is endowed with reason, by which he comprehends the chain of consequences, perceives the cause of things, understands the relation of cause to effect and of effect to cause, draws analogies, and connects and associates the present and the future – easily surveys the course of his whole life and makes the necessary preparations for its conduct.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“… we must keep ourselves free from every disturbing emotion, not only from desire and fear, but also from excessive pain and pleasure, and from anger, so that we may enjoy that calm of soul and freedom from care which bring both moral stability and dignity of character.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“… the body must be trained and so disciplined that it can obey the dictates of judgment and reason in attending to business and in enduring toil. But that moral goodness which is our theme depends wholly upon the thought and attention given to it by the mind.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“… to employ reason and speech rationally, to do with careful consideration whatever one does, and in everything to discern the truth and to uphold it – that is proper.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“… reason commands, appetite obeys.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
Groups
“… the first bond of union is that between husband and wife; the next, that between parents and children; then we find one home, with everything in common. And this is the foundation of civil government, the nursery, as it were, of the state.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“And, without the association of men, cities could not have been built or peopled. In consequence of city life, laws and customs were established, and then came the equitable distribution of private rights and a definite social system. Upon these institutions followed a more human spirit and consideration for others…” – ‘On Duties’, Book 2 – Expediency
Liberty
“… beware of ambition for glory; for it robs us of liberty, and in defence of liberty a high-souled man should stake everything.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“Yet when the stress of circumstances demands it, we must gird on the sword and prefer death to slavery and disgrace.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“Freedom suppressed and again regained bites with keener fangs than freedom never endangered.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 2 – Expediency
Social Capital
“Nature has implanted in the human race so great a need of virtue and so great a desire to defend the common safety that the strength thereof has conquered all the allurements of pleasure and ease.” – ‘The Republic’, Book 1
“For whence comes our sense of duty? From whom do we obtain the principles of religion? Whence comes the law of nations, or even that law of ours which is called ‘civil’? Whence justice, honour, fair-dealing? Whence decency, self-restraint, fear of disgrace, eagerness for praise and honour? Whence comes endurance amid toils and dangers? I say, from those men, who, when these things had been inculcated by a system of training, either confirmed them by custom or else enforced them by statutes.” – ‘The Republic’, Book 1
“And since we feel a mighty urge to increase the resources of mankind, since we desire to make human life safer and richer by our thought and effort, and are goaded on to the fulfilment of this desire by Nature herself, let us hold to the course which has ever been that of all excellent men, turning deaf ears to those who, in the hope of even recalling those who have already gone ahead, are sounding the retreat.” – ‘The Republic’, Book 1
“… no one should be entirely neglected who shows any trace of virtue…” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“… we should always strive to secure a peace that shall not admit of guile.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“The interests of society… and its common bonds will be best conserved, if kindness be shown to each individual in proportion to the closeness of his relationship. But it seems we must trace back to their ultimate sources the principles of fellowship and society that Nature has established among men. The first principle is that which is found in the connection subsisting between all the members of the human race; and that bond of connection is reason and speech, which by the processes of teaching and learning, of communicating, discussing, and reasoning associate men together and unite them in a sort of natural fraternity… This, then, is the most comprehensive bond that unites together men as men and all to all…” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“The bonds of common blood hold men fast through good-will and affection; for it means much to share in common the same family traditions, the same forms of domestic worship, and the same ancestral tombs. But of all the bonds of fellowship, there is none more noble, none more powerful than when good men of congenial character are joined in intimate friendship; for really, if we discover in another that moral goodness on which I dwell so much, it attracts us and makes us friends to the one in whose character it seems to dwell. And while every virtue attracts us and makes us love those who seem to possess it, still justice and generosity do so most of all. Nothing, moreover, is more conducive to love and intimacy than compatibility of character in good men; for when two people have the same ideals and the same tastes, it is a natural consequence that each loves the other as himself…” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“… strong bond of fellowship is effected by mutual interchange of kind services; and as long as these kindnesses are mutual and acceptable, those between whom they are interchanged are united by the ties of an enduring intimacy.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“… diplomacy in the friendly settlement of controversies is more desirable than courage in settling them on the battlefield…” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“… human beings… exercise their skill together in action and thought because they are naturally gregarious.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“… courage (Fortitude), if unrestrained by the uniting bonds of society, would be but a sort of brutality and savagery. Hence it follows that the claims of human society and the bonds that unite men together take precedence of the pursuit of speculative knowledge.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“And how could houses ever have been provided in the first place for the human race, to keep out the rigours of the cold and alleviate the discomforts of the heat; or how could the ravages of furious tempest or of earthquake or of time upon them afterward have been repaired, had not the bonds of social life taught men in such events to look to their fellow-men for help?” – ‘On Duties’, Book 2 – Expediency
“… we secure great advantages through the sympathetic co-operation of our fellow-men…” – ‘On Duties’, Book 2 – Expediency
“… man is the source of both the greatest help and the greatest harm to man.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 2 – Expediency
“… the co-operation of men… is secured through wisdom and virtue.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 2 – Expediency
“… of all motives, none is better adapted to secure influence and hold it fast than love; nothing is more foreign to that end than fear.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 2 – Expediency
“Good-will is won principally through kind services… the love of people generally is powerfully attracted by a man’s mere name and reputation for generosity, kindness, justice, honour, and all those virtues that belong to gentleness of character and affability of manner… we are… compelled by Nature herself to love those in whom we believe those virtues reside.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 2 – Expediency
“… the command of confidence can be secured… if people think us possessed of practical wisdom combined with a sense of justice.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 2 – Expediency
“The better and more noble… the character with which a man is endowed, the more does he prefer the life of service to the life of pleasure.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 3 – The Conflict Between The Right And The Expedient
Trust
“Promises are… sometimes not to be kept; and trusts are not always to be restored… to keep a promise, to abide by an agreement, to restore a trust may, with a change of expediency, cease to be morally right.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 3 – The Conflict Between The Right And The Expedient
Virtues
“… it is not enough to possess virtue, as if it were an art of some sort, unless you make use of it… the existence of virtue depends entirely upon its use; and its noblest use is the government of the State…” – ‘The Republic’, Book 1
“… there is really no other occupation in which human virtue approaches more closely the august functions of the gods than that of founding new States or preserving those already in existence.” – ‘The Republic’, Book 1
“… he who posits the supreme good as having no connection with virtues… measures it not by a moral standard but by his own interests…” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“But all that is morally right rises from some one of four sources: it is concerned either (1) with the full perception and intelligent development of the true; or (2) with the conservation of organized society, with rendering to every man his due, and with the faithful discharge of obligations assumed; or (3) with the greatness and strength of a noble and invincible spirit; or (4) with the orderliness and moderation of everything that is said and done, wherein consist temperance and self-control. Although these four are connected and interwoven, still it is in each one considered singly that certain definite kinds of moral duties have their origin: in that category, for instance, which was designated first in our division and in which we place wisdom and prudence, belong the search after truth and its discovery; and this is the peculiar province of that virtue. For the more clearly anyone observes the most essential truth in any given case and the more quickly and accurately he can see and explain the reasons for it, the more understanding and wise he is generally esteemed, and justly so. So, then it is truth that is, as it were, the stuff with which this virtue has to deal and on which it employs itself. Before the three remaining virtues, on the other hand, is set the task of providing and maintaining those things on which the practical business of life depends, so that the relations of man to man in human society may be conserved, and that largeness and nobility of soul may be revealed not only in increasing one’s resources and acquiring advantages for one’s self and one’s family but far more in rising superior to these very things. But orderly behavior and consistency of demeanour and self-control and the like have their sphere in that department of things in which a certain amount of physical exertion, and not mental activity merely, is required. For if we bring a certain amount of propriety and order into the transactions of daily life, we shall be conserving moral rectitude and moral dignity.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“… the whole glory of virtue is in activity.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“… justice… is the crowning glory of the virtues… close akin to justice, charity… may also be called kindness or generosity.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“The foundation of justice… is good faith, that is, truth and fidelity to promises and agreements.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“The great majority of people… when they fall a prey to ambition for either military or civil authority, are carried away by it so completely that they quite lose sight of the claims of justice.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“Injustice often arises… through chicanery, that is, through an over-subtle and even fraudulent construction of the law. This it is that gave rise to the now familiar saw, ‘More law, less justice.’” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“But let us remember that we must have regard for justice even towards the humblest.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“But of all forms of injustice, none is more flagrant than that of the hypocrite who, at the very moment when he is most false, makes it his business to appear virtuous.” ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“… let us speak of kindness and generosity. Nothing appeals more to the best in human nature than this.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“… by the standard of justice all acts of kindness must be measured.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“We must… take care to indulge only in such liberality as will help our friends and hurt no one.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“… for nothing is generous, if it is not at the same time just.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“… our beneficence should not exceed our means.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“… no duty is more imperative than that of proving one’s gratitude.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“… acts of generosity… are performed with judgment, deliberation, and mature consideration.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“… achievement is most glorious in the eyes of the world which is won with a spirit great, exalted, and superior to the vicissitudes of earthly life.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“The Stoics… correctly define courage as ‘that virtue which champions the cause of right.’ Accordingly, no one has attained to true glory who has gained a reputation for courage by treachery and cunning; for nothing that lacks justice can be morally right.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“… men who are courageous and high-souled shall at the same time be good and straightforward, lovers of truth, and foes of deception; for these qualities are the centre and soul of justice.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“… it takes a brave and resolute spirit not to be disconcerted in times of difficulty… not to swerve from the path of reason… this requires great personal courage; but it calls also for great intellectual ability… These… mark a spirit strong, high, and self-reliant in its prudence and wisdom.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“… when fortune smiles and the stream of life flows according to our wishes, let us diligently avoid all arrogance, haughtiness, and pride. For it is as much a sign of weakness to give way to one’s feeling in success as it is in adversity.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“The higher we are placed, the more humbly should we walk.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“Only let [property] in the first place, be honestly acquired, by the use of no dishonest or fraudulent means; let it, in the second place, increase by wisdom, industry, and thrift; and finally, let it be made available for the use of as many as possible (if only they are worthy) and be at the service of generosity and beneficence rather than of sensuality and excess. By observing these rules, one may live in magnificence, dignity, and independence, and yet in honour, truth and charity toward all.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“… there is a certain element of propriety perceptible in every act of moral rectitude…” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“If we follow Nature as our guide, we shall never go astray, but we shall be pursuing that which is in its nature clear-sighted and penetrating (Wisdom), that which is adapted to promote and strengthen society (Justice), and that which is strong and courageous (Fortitude). But the very essence of propriety is found in the division of virtue which is now under discussion (Temperance). For it is only when they agree with Nature’s laws that we should give our approval to the movements not only of the body, but still more of the spirit.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“If, then, a man is unable to conduct eases at the bar or to hold the people spell-bound with his eloquence or to conduct wars, still it will be his duty to practise these other virtues, which are within his reach – justice, good faith, generosity, temperance, self-control – that his deficiencies in other respects may be less conspicuous.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“… more precious than any inherited wealth, is a reputation for virtue and worthy deeds.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“… the owner should bring honour to his house, not the house to its owner.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“… all moral rectitude springs from four sources (one of which is prudence; the second, social instinct; the third, courage; the fourth, temperance), it is often necessary in deciding a question of duty that these virtues be weighed against one another.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“… the duties prescribed by justice must be given precedence over the pursuit of knowledge and the duties imposed by it.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 1 – Moral Goodness
“… virtue in general may be said to consist almost wholly in three properties: the first is (Wisdom) the ability to perceive what in any given circumstance is true and real, what its relations are, its consequences, and its causes; the second is (Temperance) the ability to restrain the passions and make the impulses obedient to reason; and the third is (Justice) the skill to treat with consideration and wisdom those with whom we are associated…” – ‘On Duties’, Book 2 – Expediency
“The highest, truest glory depends upon… the affection, the confidence, and the mingled admiration and esteem of the people.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 2 – Expediency
“Justice is… in every way to be cultivated and maintained, both for its own sake (for otherwise it would not be justice) and for the enhancement of personal honour and glory… If, therefore, anyone wishes to win true glory, let him discharge the duties required by justice.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 2 – Expediency
“Liberality is… forestalled by liberality.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 2 – Expediency
“… justice… is the sovereign mistress and queen of all the virtues.” – ‘On Duties’, Book 3 – The Conflict Between The Right And The Expedient
Final Thoughts
Marcus Tullius Cicero’s timeless wisdom continues to resonate nearly two millennia after his death. His insights into virtue, justice, and the bonds that unite humanity offer a blueprint for ethical living that transcends cultural and temporal boundaries.
Cicero reminds us that true glory comes not from ambition or power, but from justice, generosity, and service to others. In an era often characterized by self-promotion and individual achievement, his call to measure our worth by how we strengthen the bonds of human fellowship is both countercultural and essential, and his emphasis on virtue being realized through action, not mere contemplation, challenges us to embody our principles in daily life.
Perhaps most relevant to our modern age is Cicero’s understanding of social capital and human interdependence. His observation that “man is the source of both the greatest help and the greatest harm to man” feels particularly prescient in our interconnected world. His vision of society bound together by mutual kindness, shared virtue, and rational discourse offers both a critique of our current divisions and a path forward.
As we navigate our own turbulent times, Cicero’s balanced approach – honoring both individual excellence and collective responsibility – provides enduring guidance. His words invite us to be both philosophers and citizens, thinkers and doers, pursuing truth while actively working to create a more just and compassionate world.
Thanks for reading!