DOCSLIB.ORG

CICERO's EARLY SPEECHES Ann Vasaly the Political And

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
CICERO's EARLY SPEECHES Ann Vasaly the Political And CHAPTER FOUR CICERO'S EARLY SPEECHES Ann Vasaly The political and oratorical career- the two cannot and should not be separated- of Marcus Tullius Cicero began in a world of civic chaos and bloodshed. Born in 106 B.C., I educated after the age of lOin Rome, he would have received the toga virilis, the 'toga of manhood,' in about 90, the beginning of a decade in Rome marked by appalling political violence. The election to the consulship of L. Cornelius Sulla in 88 was soon followed by the unprecedented spectacle of a Roman general unleashing a Roman army against his fellow citizens, the aftermath of the attempt by the tribune P. Sulpicius Rufus to transfer Sulla's military command against Mithradates of Pontus to the aging Gaius Marius. After Sulla's first march on Rome, his elimination of many of his enemies, and his subsequent depar­ ture for the East, he was simultaneously outlawed and allowed to wage war against Rome's enemies in Greece and Asia Minor. During his absence, Rome endured the domination of L. Cornelius Cinna and his allies, whose return to the city with Marius after Sulla's departure was accompanied by the slaughter of their political ene­ mies, including one of the greatest orators of the day, Marcus Antonius. A new spasm of violence began with the death of Cinna in 84, at which Sulla declared himself in rebellion against the government and prepared to return to Italy to wage war against his domestic opponents. Among those murdered in Rome in the months before the outbreak of that conflict was Q Mucius Scaevola, the aged law I All dates are B.C. For Ciceronian biography, ancient sources include the ora­ tor's own works- especially the epistles and the Brutus- and Plutarch's life of the orator, which draws on many sources no longer extant. Among more recent mod­ ern treatments are: M. Gelzer, Cicero, ein biographischer Versuch (Wiesbaden: Franz Steiner 1969); D. L. Stockton, Cicero: A Political Biography (New York: Oxford University Press 1971 ); E. Rawson, Cicero, a Portrait (London: Allen Lane 1975); T . N. Mitchell, Cicero, the Ascending Years (New Haven: Yale University Press 1979); C. Habicht, Cicero the Politician (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press 1990). 72 ANN VASALY expert and pontiftx maximus, who had for several years served as the young Cicero's teacher and mentor. Despite Scaevola's previous will­ ingness to work with the Cinnan government and despite his posi­ tion as head of the state religion, his death was ordered by the praetor of 82. The victory of Sulla at the Colline Gate began another bloodletting, a reign of terror given a semblance of legality by the publication of lists of the proscribed, i.e., those citizens who could be killed with impunity. If large-scale purges and civic violence came to a temporary end during the years of Sullan dominance (82- 79), it was in large part because many citizens with strong political sen­ timents and the courage to fight for them had been killed or driven off by one side or the other. Thus, in 81, still mourning the violent deaths of many of the men he had admired and learned from, and exquisitely aware not only of the dangers of opposing a leader such as Sulla but even of remaining neutral under the domination of a military dynast, Cicero embarked on his public career. 1. The Pro Quinctio Cicero's first published speech, the Pro OJ1inctio, was delivered in 81 under Sulla dictator. At the beginning of this oration Cicero speaks of other cases he had undertaken; we may assume, therefore, that he had appeared in earlier civil actions during the same year. The speech for Quinctius was probably the most noteworthy of these­ in part because opposing him in the case had been Q Hortensius Hortalus, the foremost orator in Rome at that time. In this speech and in the Pro Roscio Amerino of the following year, Cicero alludes often to his youth and inexperience.2 It would be a mistake, how­ ever, to make too much of the orator's claimed lack of sophistica­ tion and maturity at this time. His preparation for his debut had been a thorough one under the guidance of some of the most emi­ nent orators and legal minds of the day, and-according to Plutarch (Cic. 2.2)- Cicero's brilliance as a student had been such that the fathers of those he studied with had come to listen to him declaim. Furthermore, his period of preparation had been unusually long, no doubt a result of the political troubles of the 80s. Other ambitious 2 See O!finet. 2- 4, 34, 77; Rose. Am. ]- 5, 9, 31, 34, 60. .
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Cicero's Life
    Cicero Philippic II Cicero’s Life Lives of Cicero of all lengths and depths abound; what follows is intended to highlight the main landmarks in Cicero’s career. A separate table chronicles the events of 44 BC in more detail. Date (BC) Cicero and his circle Rome 107 Marius elected consul for the first time 106 Birth of Marcus Tullius Cicero and Gnaeus Pompeius (Pompey), later called ‘Magnus’; both equestrians. 104 – 100 Marius consul for five successive years. 104/2 Birth of Cicero’s brother, Quintus. 90s Cicero is educated at Rome in house of L. Licinius Crassus and later continues his studies with the augur Q. Mucius Scaevola. 91 – 88 Cicero and Pompey both serve under The Social War, in which Rome’s Sulla, Pompey as a successful Italian allies fight against Rome’s general. predominance and win citizenship. 88 – 84 Occupation of Rome first by Sulla (88) and then by Marius and Cinna (87 – 6). Marius dies in 86, Cinna continues to control affairs until his death in 84. ?86 Cicero writes a rhetorical treatise, de Inventione. 82 Sulla marches on Rome and is made dictator. Proscriptions follow (in 81). He retires from office in 79 and dies in 78. Date (BC) Cicero and his circle Rome 81 Cicero’s first civil case, pro Quinctio Sulla’s reforms curtailing powers of (which he probably loses). tribunate, increasing size of senate and constituting seven senatorial courts. 80 Cicero’s first criminal case, pro Roscio Amerino (which he wins). 79 – 77 Cicero marries Terentia and travels abroad, including to Athens for six months to study rhetoric under Apollonius Molo.
    [Show full text]
  • The Military Reforms of Gaius Marius in Their Social, Economic, and Political Context by Michael C. Gambino August, 2015 Directo
    The Military Reforms of Gaius Marius in their Social, Economic, and Political Context By Michael C. Gambino August, 2015 Director of Thesis: Dr. Frank Romer Major Department: History Abstract The goal of this thesis is, as the title affirms, to understand the military reforms of Gaius Marius in their broader societal context. In this thesis, after a brief introduction (Chap. I), Chap. II analyzes the Roman manipular army, its formation, policies, and armament. Chapter III examines Roman society, politics, and economics during the second century B.C.E., with emphasis on the concentration of power and wealth, the legislative programs of Ti. And C. Gracchus, and the Italian allies’ growing demand for citizenship. Chap. IV discusses Roman military expansion from the Second Punic War down to 100 B.C.E., focusing on Roman military and foreign policy blunders, missteps, and mistakes in Celtiberian Spain, along with Rome’s servile wars and the problem of the Cimbri and Teutones. Chap. V then contextualizes the life of Gaius Marius and his sense of military strategy, while Chap VI assesses Marius’s military reforms in his lifetime and their immediate aftermath in the time of Sulla. There are four appendices on the ancient literary sources (App. I), Marian consequences in the Late Republic (App. II), the significance of the legionary eagle standard as shown during the early principate (App. III), and a listing of the consular Caecilii Metelli in the second and early first centuries B.C.E. (App. IV). The Marian military reforms changed the army from a semi-professional citizen militia into a more professionalized army made up of extensively trained recruits who served for longer consecutive terms and were personally bound to their commanders.
    [Show full text]
  • Expression “Loco Filiae” in Gaius' Institutes
    ARTICLES 1SOME CONSIDERATIONS ON THE EXPRESSION “LOCO FILIAE” IN GAIUS’ INSTITUTES Carlos Felipe Amunátegui Perelló* Patricio-Ignacio Carvajal Ramírez** Key words: Manus; potestas; mancipium; Gaius 1 Introduction The expression “loco filiae” that Gaius uses to describe the position of the wife in manu has led a significant number of scholars to the firm belief thatmanus and patria * Professor of Roman law, Pontificia Universidad Católica, Chile. This article is part of the Conicyt Research Project Anillos de Instigación Asociativa SOC 1111 and Fondecyt Regular 1141231. ** Professor of Roman law, Pontificia Universidad Católica, Chile. This article is part of the Conicyt Research Project Anillos de Instigación Asociativa SOC 1111 and Fondecyt Regular 1141231. Fundamina DOI: 10.17159/2411-7870/2016/v22n1a1 Volume 22 | Number 1 | 2016 Print ISSN 1021-545X/ Online ISSN 2411-7870 pp 1-24 1 CARLOS FELIPE AMUNÁTEGUI PERELLÓ AND PATRICIO-IGNACIO CARVAJAL RAMÍREZ potestas were equivalent powers.1 Although the personal powers that a paterfamilias could exert over his descendants did not seem to match those that he could apply to his wife in manu, Gaius consistently uses the expression loco filiae to describe her position. The personal powers which a paterfamilias usually held in relation to his descendants, namely the vitae necisque potestas (the power to kill or let live), ius noxa dandi (the right to surrender the perpetrator of some pre-defined offences), and the ius vendendi (the right to sell them in mancipio), seem to have adjusted poorly to the position of a wife under manus. Although the possibility has been put forward that the husband had some kind of ius vitae necisque over his wife in manu,2 this notion remains controversial.3 Further, the possibility of selling one’s own wife or surrendering her after a noxal action is not supported by any ancient sources.
    [Show full text]
  • Pompey and Cicero: an Alliance of Convenience
    POMPEY AND CICERO: AN ALLIANCE OF CONVENIENCE THESIS Presented to the Graduate Council of Texas State University-San Marcos in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of ARTS by Charles E. Williams Jr., B.A. San Marcos, Texas May 2013 POMPEY AND CICERO: AN ALLIANCE OF CONVENIENCE Committee Members Approved: ______________________________ Pierre Cagniart, Chair ______________________________ Kenneth Margerison ______________________________ Elizabeth Makowski Approved: ______________________________ J. Michael Willoughby Dean of the Graduate College COPYRIGHT by Charles E. Williams Jr. 2013 FAIR USE AND AUTHOR’S PERMISSION STATEMENT Fair Use This work is protected by the Copyright Laws of the United States (Public Law 94- 553, section 107). Consistent with fair use as defined in the Copyright Laws, brief quotations from this material are allowed with proper acknowledgment. Use of this material for financial gain without the author’s express written permission is not allowed. Duplication Permission As the copyright holder of this work I, Charles E. Williams Jr., authorize duplication of this work, in whole or in part, for educational or scholarly purposes only. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Above all I would like to thank my parents, Chuck and Kay Williams, for their continuing support, assistance, and encouragement. Their desire to see me succeed in my academic career is perhaps equal to my own. Thanks go as well to Dr Pierre Cagnart, without whom this work would not have been possible. His expertise in Roman politics and knowledge concerning the ancient sources were invaluable. I would also like to thank Dr. Kenneth Margerison and Dr. Elizabeth Makowski for critiquing this work and many other papers I have written as an undergraduate and graduate student.
    [Show full text]
  • Prosopopoeia in Ciceronian Oratory
    Prosopopoeia in Ciceronian Oratory Tyler Broome A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Classics University of Otago March 2021 Abstract This thesis examines the form and function of prosopopoeia in Cicero’s speeches. Prosopopoeia – the rhetorical device in which an orator fabricates and delivers a discourse as another character – offers an alternative to the orator’s own speech for the communication of information and emotion. The most recent study on the device, D.S. Mayfield’s Variants of Rhetorical Ventriloquism, suggests that “it is always significant rhetorically in whose mouth words are being put – at what time, in which context and whose presence, by which means, and (above all) in the interest of what or whom” (Mayfield 2019, 147-148). This study seeks to evaluate Mayfield’s claim in the practice of Ciceronian oratory by examining when Cicero used the device, whom he portrayed, and how the device contributed to his persuasive aims. A preliminary examination of extant rhetorical theory up to and including Quintilian provides context for Cicero’s practice, identifying a range of potential effects the device could enact. Ancient theory also raises several questions about taxonomical distinctions between types of prosopopoeia, which are briefly discussed to further contextualise Cicero’s practice. Following this, eight of Cicero’s speeches are discussed in chronological order: Pro Quinctio; Pro Roscio Amerino; In Verrem 2.5; the First Catilinarian; Pro Caelio; In Pisonem; Pro Plancio; and Pro Milone. Notable prosopopoeiae in these speeches are identified and evaluated in relation to their persuasive effect on the audience, identifying a diverse range of uses for the device such as generating indignation or pity, and the delineation of characters.
    [Show full text]
  • Julius Caesar
    Working Paper CEsA CSG 168/2018 ANCIENT ROMAN POLITICS – JULIUS CAESAR Maria SOUSA GALITO Abstract Julius Caesar (JC) survived two civil wars: first, leaded by Cornelius Sulla and Gaius Marius; and second by himself and Pompeius Magnus. Until he was stabbed to death, at a senate session, in the Ides of March of 44 BC. JC has always been loved or hated, since he was alive and throughout History. He was a war hero, as many others. He was a patrician, among many. He was a roman Dictator, but not the only one. So what did he do exactly to get all this attention? Why did he stand out so much from the crowd? What did he represent? JC was a front-runner of his time, not a modern leader of the XXI century; and there are things not accepted today that were considered courageous or even extraordinary achievements back then. This text tries to explain why it’s important to focus on the man; on his life achievements before becoming the most powerful man in Rome; and why he stood out from every other man. Keywords Caesar, Politics, Military, Religion, Assassination. Sumário Júlio César (JC) sobreviveu a duas guerras civis: primeiro, lideradas por Cornélio Sula e Caio Mário; e depois por ele e Pompeius Magnus. Até ser esfaqueado numa sessão do senado nos Idos de Março de 44 AC. JC foi sempre amado ou odiado, quando ainda era vivo e ao longo da História. Ele foi um herói de guerra, como outros. Ele era um patrício, entre muitos. Ele foi um ditador romano, mas não o único.
    [Show full text]
  • Roman History the LEGENDARY PERIOD of the KINGS (753
    Roman History THE LEGENDARY PERIOD OF THE KINGS (753 - 510 B.C.) Rome was said to have been founded by Latin colonists from Alba Longa, a nearby city in ancient Latium. The legendary date of the founding was 753 B.C.; it was ascribed to Romulus and Remus, the twin sons of the daughter of the king of Alba Longa. Later legend carried the ancestry of the Romans back to the Trojans and their leader Aeneas, whose son Ascanius, or Iulus, was the founder and first king of Alba Longa. The tales concerning Romulus’s rule, notably the rape of the Sabine women and the war with the Sabines, point to an early infiltration of Sabine peoples or to a union of Latin and Sabine elements at the beginning. The three tribes that appear in the legend of Romulus as the parts of the new commonwealth suggest that Rome arose from the amalgamation of three stocks, thought to be Latin, Sabine, and Etruscan. The seven kings of the regal period begin with Romulus, from 753 to 715 B.C.; Lucius Tarquinius Superbus, from 534 to 510 B.C., the seventh and last king, whose tyrannical rule was overthrown when his son ravished Lucretia, the wife of a kinsman. Tarquinius was banished, and attempts by Etruscan or Latin cities to reinstate him on the throne at Rome were unavailing. Although the names, dates, and events of the regal period are considered as belonging to the realm of fiction and myth rather than to that of factual history, certain facts seem well attested: the existence of an early rule by kings; the growth of the city and its struggles with neighboring peoples; the conquest of Rome by Etruria and the establishment of a dynasty of Etruscan princes, symbolized by the rule of the Tarquins; the overthrow of this alien control; and the abolition of the kingship.
    [Show full text]
  • The Roman World • Lecture 6 • the End of the Republic: Julius Caesar
    • MDS1TRW: The Roman World • Lecture 6 • The End of the Republic: Julius Caesar CRICOS Provider 00115M latrobe.edu.au CRICOS Provider 00115M The end of the Republic: 133-27 BCE 1. Poli=cal and civil conflict of late Republic 2. Julius Caesar http://www.clas.ufl.edu/users/jmarks/Caesar/Caesar.html 133 BCE • AEalus III of PerGamum • Tiberius Gracchus = Tribune of the People (plebs) • veto power • T. Gracchus’ Land Bill http://sightseeingrome.blogspot.com.au/2010/10/portrait-of-gracchi-according-to.html 123 BCE • Gaius Gracchus = Tribune of the People (plebs) – Grain price – Extor=on Courts • equites – Ci=zenship Bill http://sightseeingrome.blogspot.com.au/2010/10/portrait-of-gracchi-according-to.html Op=mates and Populares • Op=mates: senatorial • Populares: people • Lucius Cornelius Sulla http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sulla_Glyptothek_Munich_309_white_bkg.jpg • Gaius Marius http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaius_Marius GAIUS MARIUS • 105: Gauls • Army reform • Consul 107, 104-100, 86 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaius_Marius Rome vs. ItalY • Ci=zenship Bill • 91 Drusus murdered • 91-88 Social War • vs. socii http://www.britishmuseum.org/explore/highlights/highlight_image.aspx?image=ps297454.jpg&retpage=17508 Rome vs. Pontus • Mithridates VI • Sulla… • Sulpicius: Marius Sulla vs. Marius • Proscrip=ons • Cinna consul 87 • Cinna & Marius 86 • Sulla dictator 82 • New cons=tu=on 81 Sulla dictator • New cons=tu=on 81 – Tribunes of the People lose veto – Council of People lose leGislave riGhts – doubles Senate – Extor=on court -> senate –
    [Show full text]
  • Slide 1 ______Civil War in Rome and the End of the Roman Republic ______
    Slide 1 ___________________________________ Civil War in Rome and the End of the Roman Republic ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ © Student Handouts, Inc. www.studenthandouts.com ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ Slide 2 Tiberius Gracchus and Land Reform ___________________________________ The lower classes (plebeians) were suffering. ___________________________________ 133 BCE – Tiberius Gracchus was elected as tribune He promised land reform of the plebeians ___________________________________ Tiberius Gracchus told the people: “You fight and die to give luxury to other men…but you have not a foot of ground to call your own.” Wanted to limit the Wanted to rebuild the The patricians were not Tiberius Gracchus and ___________________________________ amount of land each farming class by pleased with Tiberius hundreds of his followers person could own redistributing land Gracchus were murdered ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ Slide 3 ___________________________________ Gaius Gracchus and Reform Gaius was elected tribune in 122 BCE, about ten He also wanted land Gaius wanted even more ___________________________________ years after his brother reform. than land reform. was murdered. Gaius wanted the Gaius proposed that Gaius wanted a public government to sell grain ___________________________________ landless Romans be
    [Show full text]
  • Self-Help and Social Status in Cicero's Pro Quinctio
    C. J. Bannon, 'Self-Help and) Social Status in Cicero's Pro Quinctio', Ancient Society, 30 (2000), 71-94. SELF-HELP AND SOCIAL STATUS IN CICERO'S PRO QUINCTIO The Pro Quinctio, Cicero's earliest surviving speechl,has received little scholarly attention2,perhaps becauseits rhetoric is less sparkling than his later works, or becauselegal technicalities dominate its argument. Quinctius' was a tough case; his fIrst advocatedropped it shortly before the trial and Cicero took over. It seemsunlikely that he won the case, becauseif he had, he probably wouldn't have passedup the opportunity of boasting that he had so early in his careerbested Hortensius, who led the team of influential orators representingC. Naevius, Quinctius' oppo- nent in the suit. This paper offers a new reading of the Pro Quinctio as an early contribution of Cicero's to the ongoing dialogue about the role of law in Roman society. In the Pro Quinctio, Cicero addresssesthe relationship between self- help -taking the law into one's own hands -and legal procedure in Roman private law. In both ancient and modern discsussions,self-help is understood as an individual's taking action, even to the extent of using force, to assertor protect his rights without any formalized legal proce- dure3. Much of the political violence of the late Republic is often explained as self-help4,and these unsettled conditions also affected the private law system, as the evidence of the praetor's edict indicates: through the creation of special interdicts, the praetors in the fIrst century 1 The Pro Quinctio is dated to 81, see T.E.
    [Show full text]
  • Marius' Mules: Paving the Path to Power
    1 Marius' Mules: Paving the Path to Power Mary Wright Seminar Paper Presented to the Department of History Western Oregon University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Bachelor of Arts in History Spring 2009 For Dr. Benedict Lowe Dr Narasingha Sil Hst 499: Prof. Max Geier & Prof. Narasingha SilI 2 I Gaius Marius (157-86 B.C.) has long been a controversial figure in Roman history. His spectacular life and career which included seven consulships has been subject to many different interpretations. After his death, debate still rages about how much of his life and actions set the stage for the slow death of the Roman Republic. Ancient historians such as Plutarch have credited Marius with number of military reforms paving the way for the increased political influence of the army. This paper discusses how Marius' effectively marshalled several ongoing changes occurring within the Roman army while using military glory to vault over rejection by the Senate to the heights of political power. The defeat of Hannibal at the end of the Second Punic War (218-201 B.C.) left the Roman Republic poised for an unprecedented era of expansion. The annexation of Carthaginian holdings including Spain, Sardinia and Corsica brought wealth and opportunity to many. Families of senatorial rank continued to use military glory as a method of acquiring political power and prestige. The extensive series of wars all over the Mediterranean created the roots for several political and societal changes that are later reflected in Marius' reforms in the military. Families such as the Scipioni and Metelli produced several successful generals who won many impressive victories.
    [Show full text]
  • Course Summary
    PRELIMINARY COURSE SYLLABUS Quarter: Spring 2021 Course Title: The Roman World Course Code: HIS 197 W Instructor: Gary Devore Course Summary: This course will look at the lives of famous Romans (such as Julius Caesar, Nero, Hadrian, and Constantine) as well as the more obscure but still interesting Romans (like fraternal revolutionaries Tiberius and Gaius Gracchus, the dictator Sulla, the 3rd-century emperor Gallienus, and the powerful women who safeguarded the patrician Cornelius family). Through these personages, we will see how Rome grew from a tiny village of mud huts clustered atop hills along the Tiber River into an empire controlling land and people across all of Europe, from Spain to the Near East and from Britain to the shores of the Sahara. Grade Options and Requirements: Each week the students should 1) watch the video treatment of the material, 2) read the assigned reading, 3) take an online “open book” quiz based on the reading to check comprehension and if possible 4) take part in an online Discussion Topic sessions (an hour on Zoom, Fridays from 7-8pm Pacific time). (The Zoom discussions are optional and will be recorded so those not able to attend can watch them later.) Every week will start with an announcement reminding the students of what ancient Roman we are meeting that week and telling the students what they should be on the look out for (in the readings and the video material) with regards to the Discussion Topic sessions. A brief final essay exam is available for those wishing to take the course for a grade.
    [Show full text]