Roman Political Thought

Abstract

De legibus , Cicero argues, "the entire civic community (civitas) tends to be infected (infi ci) by the passions and vices of its leaders" (3.30). In such a case, the political leaders are both themselves corrupted (corrumpuntur) and corrupt others (corrumpunt ; 3.32). In Cicero's opinion, because of their position and status a very few members of the aristocracy "have the capacity to either corrupt (corrumpere) or restore the habits of the civic community" (mores civitatis ; 3.32). Th ough the phenomenon of corruption begins with the inordinate passions and vices of leaders, it extends to the whole civic community; it infects and diminishes civic practices and ultimately the community itself. Th e verb corrumpere often indicates harm or injury to the body. Corruption in this sense denotes a lack of health in the body politic. Cicero's account of corruption assumes that political leaders are the key to causing and remedying the civic body's infection. A diff erent explanation is suggested by his contemporary Sallust in his monographs Th e Jugurthine War and, especially, Catiline's Conspiracy. A new man born in Amiternum, a town 50 miles northeast of Rome, Sallust endured an up and down career in politics. He held the offi ce of tribune in 52 bce , but he was subsequently expunged from the senate in 50. After serving in Caesar's army from 49 to 44, he was made governor of a province. Once again he suff ered a setback, when he was charged with extortion. At this point, he retired from political life and turned his attention to writing history. 2 Sallust's account of corruption begins with passions and the Roman honor code. Th e Republic fell into corruption when the Romans' unlimited and unrestrained passions overcame their virtue. Th e Romans wanted too much-too much money and power, "the root of all evils" (Sal. Cat. 10.3). Th ese vices perverted the aristocratic code. Under the Roman honor code, wealth was a constitutive part of a wider life dedicated to the pursuit of public offi ce, glory, and standing-hence, it had value only if pursued "by honest means" (Plin. Nat. 7.139; Sal. Cat. 7.6). Now money was desired for its own sake, the result of "boundless and insatiable" greed (Sal. Cat. 11.3). Similarly, the desire for glory, which previously held value only if achieved by honorable competition, had degenerated into the desire to exercise power over others. Th e excessive desire for glory gave way to the desire for power, and that desire in turn led to the desire to dominate 2 For Sallust's biography, see Syme 1964 ; for his political thought, see Earl 1961 (virtue and the honor code); Kapust 2011b : chs. 2-3 (confl ict and rhetoric); Connolly 2015 : ch. 2 (justice, economic inequality, and judgment); Hammer 2014 : ch. 3 (memory).

An Individualist Theory of Meaning

“…64 Roman historian Jed W. Atkins writes that liberalitas, together with justice, promoted "social cohesion within a competitive political culture by preventing harm and promoting interdependence". 65 The meanings of the words liberal and liberality remained almost unchanged at least until the Enlightenment. During the Middle Ages, the word liberality was "overlaid with Christian values such as love, compassion, and especially charity".…”