Cicero And Livy

Madison’s primary focus throughout the beginning of this paper is factions. He holds a deep disdain for them as he thinks that they solely focus on themselves, while hurting other Americans, which is evident in this quote, (“…united and actuated by some common impulse of passion, or of interest, adversed to the rights of other citizens, or to the

The Greeks and the Romans were among the most influential societies in the history of the world. Evidence of Greek or Roman influence can be found in almost every culture or country that has ever existed. Though both cultures were different in practice and incredibly competitive with one another, their politics and their beliefs set the stage for future civilizations, including those of the modern world. In particular, the values and practices of Greek and Roman citizenship and politics, more than any other cultures, influences American policies today in terms of values, government, and self-image.

Have you ever thought that the U.S. government is easily comparable to the Roman's version of government? Maybe that's because the U.S. government is roughly parallel with the Ancient Roman Government. The Romans did not have a constitution, like us Americans, but their division of executive, legislative, and judicial branches is similar. The Roman government served as a template for the American government. As you read further, you will see how the governmental structures, with detail, are similar by first making points on the American style contrasted with the Roman style of government.

Both Romans and Americans are known for allowing their conquered to enjoy a certain amount of liberty. A less glorious similarity is the Roman and American social welfare systems. Straying from using the imagination and classical problem solving, both civilizations have expended their resources to quiet the cries of the hopeless, without building any hope for their unfortunate citizens. Roman law influenced much of the American legal system, especially in the area of criminal justice. America has followed in the footsteps of the Romans in many ways, for better or for worse.

Both Marcus Aurelius and Cicero try to create a guide, based on their stoic views, on how a person is supposed to live a purposeful life. Marcus Aurelius was an emperor and Cicero was a politician, so both serve somebody or something. In Cicero’s “On Friendship” he bases his guides on what he has learned from important people in his life. In Marcus Aurelius’ “Meditations” he bases his guide off of what he has learned as an emperor with stoic views. Some of what he Aurelius has learned is different from Cicero’s view of stoicism; an example of this is in section seven of Meditations. Section seven of Meditations is about what Aurelius learned from his tutor. He states, “Endure hardship, and have few needs; to do things for myself and not

This book emphasizes the alternative interpretations offered by Americans on the origins of the Constitution. Holton’s purpose with this book was to show that the framers interests involved making America more attractive to investors. In order to do so, they purposefully made the government less democratic with the writing of the Constitution. However, with the addition of the Bill of Rights, one could argue the Framers had at least a slight concern for the American people and their civil liberties.

​The United States Constitution was carefully crafted by a group of deliberate and thoughtful individuals; each having their own unique and particular ideas about government, and the people it may govern. As this supreme foundation for government was molded, each founding father put forth their learned beliefs and philosophies to be integrated into this modern document. All of the crafting members were both well-read and thoroughly educated, allowing for deep and extended discussions on past governments, their efficiencies, and their deficiencies. Through their readings and philosophical discussions, it became apparent that two previously governing bodies stood, in their opinions, above the rest: The Greek and Roman empires. Their governmental practices and virtues were key in the development of the Constitution, as they were dissected, and eventually, emulated by this country’s founding members.

This world has seen many great leaders and emperors but two of them standout a little more than the others. Their names are Julius Caesar and Napoleon Bonaparte. Both men were highly respected and greatly feared. They also ran great empires that spanned over thousands of miles. They wanted to rule and conquer anything they could. They have many similarities and differences in the way they ruled and conquered. Their empires were so big that there came a time where they couldn’t control it and their reign came to an end. Julius Caesar and Napoleon Bonaparte have molded and shaped the way rulers and leaders should rule over

Background Cicero was one of the greatest orators in Ancient Rome. He was not of noble birth, but in 64 BCE became consul, one of the most powerful offices in the Roman Republic. Cicero's time as consul was difficult, and he successfully prevented an overthrow of the Republic and his own assassination. Once Julius Caesar began to amass more and more personal power, however, he receded from active politics because he believed the ideals of the Republic would be diffused with tyranny. Once Caesar was assassinated, Cicero again became popular but because of his dislike (public and private) of Mark Antony, as Antony's power grew, Cicero's diminished. He was killed in December 43 BCE after being declared an enemy of the Republic.

Cincinnatus was chosen to be dictator of Rome in 457 B.C.E. Cincinnatus was chosen to defend Rome from attacks, especially from the attacks of the Aequi. Dictator was a position for short-term immoral methods used in emergencies. “There is no better account of how virtues of duty and simplicity enabled good Roman citizens to prevail during the travails of the fifth century B.C.E. than Livy’s Account of Cincinnatus.” (Spielvogel p.118). The values that Livy emphasized in his account of Cincinnatus was that power does not always require money. Cincinnatus had a great amount of power and used his power to help the roman citizens by fulfilling his duty of defeating the Aequi. “Now I would solicit the particular attention of those numerous people who imagine that money is everything in this world, and that rank and ability are inseparable from wealth : let them observe that Cincinnatus, the one man in whom Rome reposed all her hope of survival, was at that moment

Livy’s The Rise of Rome serves as the ultimate catalogue of Roman history, elaborating on the accomplishments of each king and set of consuls through the ages of its vast empire. In the first five books, Livy lays the groundwork for the history of Rome and sets forth a model for all of Rome to follow. For him, the “special and salutary benefit of the study of history is to behold evidence of every sort of behaviour set forth as on a splendid memorial; from it you may select for yourself and for your country what to emulate, from it what to avoid, whether basely begun or basely concluded.” (Livy 4). Livy, however, denies the general populace the right to make the same sort of conclusions that he made in

According to Scott (2008), the Constitution of America has undergone several translations within the history of America because they found it to be unclear. Whereas it appears discrepant that the unclear Constitution could be useful, the disagreement is the case (Robertson, 2005). Americans regard the Constitution to be helpful for the reason that it allows for diverseness of views. In the history of America, a variety of thoughts would develop with alarming and formidable support through various factions (Robertson, 2005). Today, the main political arguments are presented from the Republican group or Democratic group. During the early periods of the American government, arguments on politics were made by Thomas Jefferson

In Plato’s The Republic and The Apology, the topic of justice is examined from multiple angles in an attempt to discover what justice is, as well as why living a just life is desirable. Plato, writing through Socrates, identifies in The Republic what he thought justice was through the creation of an ideal city and an ideal soul. Both the ideal city and the ideal soul have three components which, when all are acting harmoniously, create what Socrates considers to be justice. Before he outlines this city and soul, he listens to the arguments of three men who hold popular ideas of the period. These men act to legitimize Socrates’ arguments because he finds logical errors in all of their opinions. In The Apology, a different, more down-to-Earth, Socrates is presented who, through his self-defense in court, reveals a different, even contradictory, view of the justice presented in The Republic. In this paper, the full argument of justice from The Republic will be examined, as well as the possible inconsistencies between The Republic and The Apology.

Publius believed in an emphasis in the Constitution on mechanisms for the restraint of the passions of the American people rather than a reliance on their virtues or reason. While Publius knows that humans are capable of reason, rationality and good self-government, he knows they are also very prone to being controlled by their passion and self-interest. This first set of qualities enables a society to be free, stable and prosperous, while the second leads to the destruction of such a society. The protection of the one and the restriction of the other is a very delicate balance. The government that achieves this balance would need to be limited enough so that men may make use of their faculties for self-government, but Publius argues that it

The films begin with Cleopatra being in exile, she is the rightful Queen of Egypt. The throne was stolen by her siblings; Arsinoe and Ptolemy. Roman General Julius Caesar arrives at Alexandra to collect the debt that Egypt owes Roman. Being the bold queen that she is, Cleopatra smuggles herself into the palace, wrapped in a carpet, under the pretense that the carpet is a gift from her to Caesar. They soon become involved with each other. With her new ally on her side, the next morning, Cleopatra and her younger brother are betrothed to marry by Caesar. After their union, Cleopatra is proclaimed the Queen of Egypt. This forces the impressionable Ptolemy to join forces with Arsinoe to over through their sister out of Alexandria for the second