As the greatest Roman orator of his time, Cicero
delivered over one hundred speeches in the law courts,
in the senate and before the people of Rome. He was also
a philosopher, a patriot and a private man. While his
published speeches preserve scandalous accounts of the
murder, corruption and violence that plagued Rome in the
first century BC, his surviving letters give an
exceptional glimpse into Cicero's own personality and
his reactions to events as they unravelled around him
events, he thought, which threatened to destabilize the
system of government he loved and establish a tyranny
over Rome. From his rise to power as a self-made man,
Cicero's career took him through the years of Sulla, and
the civil war between Pompey and Caesar, to his own last
fight against Mark Antony. Drawing chiefly on Cicero s
speeches and letters, as well as the most recent
scholarship, Kathryn Tempest presents a new, highly
readable narrative of Cicero's life and times from his
rise to prominence until his brutal death. Including
helpful features such as detailed chronological tables,
a glossary, a guide to Greek and Roman authors and maps,
the volume balances background and contextual
information with analysis and explanation of Cicero's
works. Organized chronologically and according to some
of his most famous speeches, Cicero will appeal
to anyone with an interest in Roman history, oratory and
politics in the ancient world. This accessible yet
comprehensive guide provides a thorough introduction to
this key ancient figure, his works and influence, and
the troubled political times in which he operated.
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