“Hiero” by Xenophon

Confessions of a Despot I assure you that despots are worse off than private citizens in the matter of pleasure and delights. Marriage It is commonly held that a marriage into a family of greater wealth and influence is most honourable, and is a source of pride and pleasure to the bridegroom. Next to that comes a marriage with equals. A marriage with inferiors is considered positively degrading and useless. […]

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Letters to Atticus IV

“Letters to Atticus IV” by Cicero

A collection of letters written by Cicero to his close friend Atticus during his declining years, i.e., the period between the death of his daughter and his own murder, which is also a period of crisis in Roman history, from the fall of the Republic to the rise of dictatorship and the Roman Empire. The letters provide rare insights into Cicero as a person, friend, prolific writer and astute statesman. The […]

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“Republic” by Plato

One of the best books I’ve ever read. I wish I had read it twenty years ago, but perhaps I would not have appreciated it as much. Although this is one of the most influential books in history, I put off reading it because of a lack of interest in political science. Ironically, another influential book on the subject, “The Prince” by Niccolo Machiavelli, drove me to this, to seek […]

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