Cicero (on the Stoics) · 106–43 BCE
On Duties 1.135 — Cicero (on the Stoics)
Translation by Walter Miller (1913)
Cicero (on the Stoics), On Duties 1.135
The subjects of conversation are usually affairs of the home or politics or the practice of the professions and learning. Accordingly, if the talk begins to drift off to other channels, pains should be taken to bring it back again to the matter in hand—but with due consideration to the company present; for we are not all interested in the same things at all times or in the same degree. We must observe, too, how far the conversation is agreeable and, as it had a reason for its beginning, so there should be a point at which to close it tactfully.
Cite this passage
Cicero (on the Stoics), On Duties 1.135, tr. Walter Miller (1913)
https://whatwouldstoicsdo.com/passage/on-duties/1.135
Cicero, On Duties (De Officiis), tr. Walter Miller (Loeb, 1913). Text: Perseus Digital Library (CC BY-SA 4.0). Sources and licences
In plain English
AI-written notesWhen a conversation drifts, steer it gently back to the matter at hand while considering the people present, since not everyone cares about the same things. Notice whether the talk is still welcome, and when it has run its course, end it tactfully.
Themes and situations
- Speech and silence
- Community and our duty to others
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