Cicero (on the Stoics) · 106–43 BCE
On Duties 1.91 — Cicero (on the Stoics)
Translation by Walter Miller (1913)
Cicero (on the Stoics), On Duties 1.91
The greater our prosperity, moreover, the more should we seek the counsel of friends, and the greater the heed that should be given to their advice. Under such circumstances also we must beware of lending an ear to sycophants or allowing them to impose upon us with their flattery. For it is easy in this way to deceive ourselves, since we thus come to think ourselves duly entitled to praise; and to this frame of mind a thousand delusions may be traced, when men are puffed up with conceit and expose themselves to ignominy and ridicule by committing the most egregious blunders. So much for this subject.
Cite this passage
Cicero (on the Stoics), On Duties 1.91, tr. Walter Miller (1913)
https://whatwouldstoicsdo.com/passage/on-duties/1.91
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 notesThe more successful you are, the more you should seek and heed the advice of friends and beware of flatterers, since it is easy to fool yourself into thinking you deserve the praise. That kind of conceit leads to egregious mistakes and public ridicule.
Older wording
- “sycophants”
- — flatterers who say what pleases
- “ignominy”
- — public disgrace
- “egregious”
- — glaringly bad
Themes and situations
- Pride and humility
- Friendship
- Reputation and others' opinions
- Ambition and success
- Judgements and impressions
- Handling success
- Leading others
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