Tusculanae Disputationes

The Tusculanae Disputationes (the Tusculan Disputations), is a series of books written by Cicero, around 45 BC, attempting to popularise Stoic philosophy in Ancient Rome. It is so called as it was reportedly written at his villa in Tusculum.

The Tusculanae Disputationes consists of five books:

1. "On the contempt of death"
2. "On bearing pain"
3. "On grief of mind"
4. "On other perturbations of the mind"
5. "Whether virtue alone be sufficient for a happy life"

The rhetor's theme De contemptu mundi, on the contempt of the world, was taken up by Boethius in the troubled closing phase of Late Antiquity and by Bernard of Cluny in the first half of the twelfth century.

In the Tusculan Disputations is the locus classicus of the legend of the Sword of Damocles. There is also a disapproving note that Amafinius was one of the first Latin writers in Rome.

In a recent study Bernhard Koch has shown that Cicero aims at a therapy of emotions based on academic foundations but worked out by stoic thesis.

References

• Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy entry (Cicero)

External links

• e-book at Project Gutenberg
• Marcus Tullius Cicero (2009). Tusculian Disputations. General Books LLC. ISBN 9781150195785. http://books.google.ru/books?id=vyNNvUJAGeAC&printsec=frontcover&dq=cicero+%22tusculian+disputations%22#v=onepage&q&f=false.  (Google Books)