The political and intellectual activities of Cicero against the background of the tensions of his time, rebuilt by one of the leading experts of his work. There is no personality of his period we know so much about as Cicero, the great orator, writer and statesman: his own testimony is a unique source of value for our interpretation of the decline of the Roman republic. A contemporary portrait of Cicero, for all who wish to gain a thorough overview of his work and influence.

Emanuele Narducci (1950-2007), was Professor of Latin Literature at Florence, the scientific director of the Arpino Symposium Ciceronianum and coordinator of the Centro di Studi sulla fortuna dell'Antico in Sestri Levante. The book, first published in Italy in 1992, is now presented in a new revised edition.