In the opening lines of the preface to De Divinatione 2, Cicero describes his
motivation in composing of the complures libros of his post-exilic years. Most of all, he
says, he wished to prevent any interruption in his service to the state. Though he does not
say so explicitly, he clearly refers to an interruption occasioned by his exile and Caesar’s
ascension. Elsewhere Cicero describes this period of his life as enforced otium, an otium
threatened by the absence of the dignitas which Cicero identifies with the otium of L.
Crassus in the opening words of De Oratore. As he claims in Div. 2, Cicero achieved a
level of usefulness to the state (and so maintained a certain amount of dignitas) by
writing his theoretical books, books which he says communicate the optimarum artium
vias to the Roman reading public.
What Cicero does not explicitly explain is why the great majority of those works
assume the form of the dialogue. In this dissertation I seek to explore the formal
capabilities of the dialogue which would make it attractive to a Cicero seeking to maintain dignitas and to render significant service to a state faced with a rapid shift of
political and social structure. In general I argue that the dialogue form itself represents an
antidote to the decommunalizing and populizing nature of Caesarian hegemony.
As I contend, the dialogue achieves its communal nature through an emphasis on
three major ethics, each of which is demonstrated in the theories expressed within the
dialogues, in the actions of the interlocutors, and in the activity of Cicero himself as
author. These three ethics (imitatio, memoria, gratia) each depend on community for
their actualization and themselves generate the bonds that lead to community. By placing
significant, multi-layered emphasis on each of these ethics, Cicero aims to communicate
their validity to a generation of boni faced with the non-traditional, non-communal power
of Julius Caesar. / text
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UTEXAS/oai:repositories.lib.utexas.edu:2152/6878 |
| Date | 04 February 2010 |
| Creators | Hanchey, Daniel Parker |
| Source Sets | University of Texas |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Format | electronic |
| Rights | Copyright is held by the author. Presentation of this material on the Libraries' web site by University Libraries, The University of Texas at Austin was made possible under a limited license grant from the author who has retained all copyrights in the works. |
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