Abstract

The chapter is the first in a series of detailed readings of individual philosophical dialogues. De republica is examined as an attempt to ground political theory in Roman history, but one that produces ambiguous results. Close reading of the work suggests that although Cicero can conceive of an idealized Rome where political decisions and philosophical insight work together, he also makes clear that the realities of Roman history do not support such an idealization. The notion of ironic history is introduced to describe historical representations that question their own validity.