It was his custom in the opportunities of his leisure to take some friends
with him into the country, where, instead of amusing themselves with idle
sports or feasts, their diversions were wholly speculative, tending to
improve the mind and enlarge the understanding. In this manner he now
spent five days at his Tusculan villa in discussing with his friends the
several questions just mentioned. For, after employing the mornings in
declaiming and rhetorical exercises, they used to retire in the afternoon
into a gallery, called the Academy, which he had built for the purpose of
philosophical conferences, where, after the manner of the Greeks, he held
a school as they called it, and invited the company to call for any
subject that they desired to hear explained, which being proposed
accordingly by some of the audience became immediately the argument of
that day's debate. These five conferences or dialogues he collected
afterwards into writing in the very words and manner in which they really
passed; and published them under the title of his Tusculan Disputations,
from the name of the villa in which they were held.

Book I. On The Contempt Of Death.

I. At a time when I had entirely, or to a great degree, released myself
from my labours as an advocate, and from my duties as a senator, I had
recourse again, Brutus, principally by your advice, to those studies which
never had been out of my mind, although neglected at times, and which
after a long interval I resumed: and now since the principles and rules of
all arts which relate to living well depend on the study of wisdom, which
is called philosophy, I have thought it an employment worthy of me to
illustrate them in the Latin tongue: not because philosophy could not be
understood in the Greek language, or by the teaching of Greek masters; but
it has always been my opinion, that our countrymen have, in some
instances, made wiser discoveries than the Greeks, with reference to those
subjects which they have considered worthy of devoting their attention to,
and in others have improved upon their discoveries, so that in one way or
other we surpass them on every point: for, with regard to the manners and
habits of private life, and family and domestic affairs, we certainly
manage them with more elegance, and better than they did; and as to our
republic, that our ancestors have, beyond all dispute, formed on better
customs and laws. What shall I say of our military affairs