Cicero

Raphael Woolf is Reader in Philosophy at King's College London. His work focuses on ancient philosophy and he has published on Plato, Aristotle and Hellenistic philosophy.

• ContentsAcknowledgementsSome notable dates1. Introduction: Cicero and Philosophy 2. Scepticism and Certainty 3. God, Fate and Freedom 3.1. On the Nature of the Gods 3.2. On Divination 3.3. On Fate 4. The Best Form of Government 4.1. The Republic 4.2. The Laws 5. The Good Life in Theory and Practice 5.1. On Ends 5.2. On Duties 6. The Role of the Emotions Suggestions for further reading

"Woolf offers a careful reading of Cicero's philosophical works. Unlike most similar texts, which approach Cicero primarily as a documentary source for ancient philosophy, Woolf focuses on articulating and evaluating Cicero's own philosophical positions. Overall, this book provides an excellent introduction to Cicero's philosophy. Summing Up: Recommended." - B. T. Harding, Texas Woman's University, CHOICE Review"Cicero may not always have dotted his i's and crossed his t's, but this did not prevent him from writing significant and inspiring philosophy. Woolf's important and enjoyable book shows us just how good he was at it." - Katharina Volk, Columbia University, BMCR"Woolf makes a concerted effort to convey the content of Cicero’s works to a readership who have not necessarily read any of the primary texts, let alone the scholarly literature, and he does this summative work very effectively (and with very little off-putting textual work on the Latin)...Woolf writes as a philosopher for philosophers. He expounds and analyses the philosophical arguments that Cicero presents, assessing their cogency and plausibility." - Sean McConnell, University of Otag