A Commentary on Cicero, De LegibusJust as Plato drafted a vision of an ideal state in his Republic and followed that up with detailed provisions in his Laws, so Cicero -- after writing a Republic -- wanted to provide legislation for his ideal state and wrote de Legibus (the Laws) as a sequel. But while Cicero's Republic was set shortly before the death of its speaker, Scipio Africanus, in 129 b.c., his de Legibus was set in his own lifetime, thus enabling him to comment on current political events and trends. Written in the final years of the Roman Republic, de Legibus is as a work that gives Cicero's own diagnosis of the ills that had befallen the Roman state and what might be done to cure them. It is thus a document crucial to our understanding of one of the most turbulent periods of Roman history. Surprisingly, de Legibus has been one of Cicero's most neglected works. Andrew R. Dyck's commentary is the first to appear on the complete work in well over one hundred years. Dyck provides a detailed interpretation and sets the essay into the context of the politics and philosophical thought of its time. While previous commentaries focused primarily on grammar and textual criticism, this one also seeks to relate Cicero's text to the political, philosophical, and religious trends of his day. The author identifies the influences on Cicero's thinking and analyzes the relation of this theoretical treatise to his other works. This commentary is based on a new text, worked out in consultations between the author and Jonathan Powell of Royal Holloway, London. Andrew Dyck is Professor of Classics, University of California at Los Angeles. |
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Page 457
... consuls in order to satisfy the requirements of constitutional theory31 and in accord with his picture of the situation in early Rome . But the real balance of power , as he sees it , is between the principes and the plebs ( § 25 ) ...
... consuls in order to satisfy the requirements of constitutional theory31 and in accord with his picture of the situation in early Rome . But the real balance of power , as he sees it , is between the principes and the plebs ( § 25 ) ...
Page 458
... consuls were called praetores before they were called indices ; see supra on Iuris disceptator -.- Appellamino is a unique form ; if correctly read , it is evidently a contamination of the third - person plural present and future ...
... consuls were called praetores before they were called indices ; see supra on Iuris disceptator -.- Appellamino is a unique form ; if correctly read , it is evidently a contamination of the third - person plural present and future ...
Page 498
... consuls of 138 were the grain dole and the military levy for the war in the Iberian peninsula , though it was the latter , in particular the claim of Curiatius and another tribune , Sex . Licinius , to be able to exempt ten men , that ...
... consuls of 138 were the grain dole and the military levy for the war in the Iberian peninsula , though it was the latter , in particular the claim of Curiatius and another tribune , Sex . Licinius , to be able to exempt ten men , that ...
Contents
Works Cited by Author | xi |
a Date | 5 |
Commentary on Book 1 46 | 111 |
Copyright | |
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Common terms and phrases
argument Arpinum atque Atticus augurs autem Bona Dea Book Brut causa Cicero cited clausula Clodius commentary consuls cretic Demetrius of Phalerum deorum deos dialogue discussion eius enim Epicurean esset esto etiam Görler Greek haec homines hominum human ibid igitur illa interrex ista iure iuris ius civile Kunkel-Wittmann Latin leges Legibus legislation legum Lintott magistrates magistratus Marcus Mommsen nature neque nihil nisi nobis OLD s.v. omnes omnia omnis Orat passage philosophical Plato plebs political populi potest Powell praetor quae quam quibus quid quidem Quintus quod ratio reference reipublicae rerum rôle Roman Rome sacra sapientia Scaevola Schmidt senate sense similar Staatsr Stoic sunt sunto supra tamen tion TLL s.v. topic transmitted tribunate Tusc Twelve Tables vero Wissowa XII Tables δὲ καὶ