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Quotation from On Duties (De Officiis) by Marcus Tullius Cicero

“But (as has been strikingly said by Plato) we are not born for ourselves alone, and our country claims her share, and our friends their share of us”

Marcus Tullius Cicero (spoken by Cicero)

On Duties (De Officiis), Book I, ch. VII, trans. Cyrus R. Edmonds

Portrait of Marcus Tullius Cicero

Cicero grounds justice in the claims that country and friends have on each person, citing Plato's letter to Archytas.

Citation: "But (as has been strikingly said by Plato) we are not born for ourselves alone, and our country claims her share, and our friends their share of us" — Marcus Tullius Cicero, On Duties (De Officiis), Book I, ch. VII, trans. Cyrus R. Edmonds. (id cicero-on-duties-q1)

Portrait: Francesco Bartolozzi - Cicero - B1977.14.19547 - Yale Center for British Art, Francesco Bartolozzi, CC0.

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Quote card: But (as has been strikingly said by Plato) we are not born for ourselves alone,