Marcus Tullius Cicero, Tusculanae Disputationes [Tusculan Disputations]

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Cicero composed his

Tusculanae Disputationes

, usually translated and referred to as

Disputations at Tusculum

or

Tusculan Disputations

(or simply

Tusculans

) and abbreviated as

Tusc

. or

TD

, in the late summer and early autumn of 45 (BCE). The five books of the dialogue purport to record five days of philosophical discussion at his country-villa in Tusculum, a city in the Alban mountains southwest of Rome, near today’s Frascati, that rich Romans used as a retreat from the capital. Each of the books is dedicated to a key theme in philosophical ethics: death, pain, distress, mental disturbances more generally, and virtue. While it is impossible to fix the dramatic date with precision – the only clue to go by is Cicero’s vague reference at

Tusc

. 1.7 to the “recent” (

nuper

) departure…

1480 words

Citation: Gildenhard, Ingo. "Tusculanae Disputationes". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 25 February 2011 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=20500, accessed 29 March 2024.]

20500 Tusculanae Disputationes 3 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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