“To some extent I liken slavery to death.”
- January 3, 106 BC – December 7, 43 BC
- Roman
- Orator, Philosopher, Statesman, Lawyer, Author
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Quote
“To some extent I liken slavery to death.”
Explanation
Cicero draws a powerful and unsettling comparison between slavery and death, suggesting that to be enslaved is to be stripped of the very essence of life—freedom, dignity, and self-determination. While not equating the two entirely, he acknowledges that slavery entails a kind of spiritual or civic death, where the individual loses their status as an autonomous being and becomes a tool of another’s will.
This reflects Cicero’s profound belief in liberty as essential to human flourishing. As a staunch defender of the Roman Republic and its ideals, he saw freedom under law as the highest political and moral good. In his philosophical and political writings, Cicero repeatedly emphasized that life without freedom is barely life at all, and that tyranny and enslavement—whether personal or political—destroy what makes us truly human.
In modern terms, Cicero’s comparison remains deeply resonant. Whether in discussions of historical slavery, modern forms of human trafficking, or systemic oppression, his words underscore the truth that to deprive a person of liberty is to diminish their humanity. The quote stands as a timeless reminder that freedom is not a luxury, but the core of a life worth living, and that its loss is a kind of living death.
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