Brutus (Cicero)

It is written in the form of a dialogue, in which Marcus Junius Brutus and Titus Pomponius Atticus ask Cicero to describe the qualities of all the leading Roman orators up to their time.

They begin to discuss a letter that reveals that the Roman state has suffered numerous losses and that Rome is going through tumultuous times.

Cicero begins by stating that eloquence is a difficult thing to acquire and that it was first present in Atticus' home town: Athens.

He mentions figures like Manius Curius Dentatus, M. Popilius, Quintus Caecilius Metellus Pius Scipio Nasica and even discusses how Cato the Elder and Lysias the Athenian resemble each other in their elegance, character, and brevity.

This is a problem because Cicero fails to include a reliable list of Roman oratory by purposely omitting figures like Gaius Marius, Sulla, Catiline, and Publius Clodius Pulcher.