Book III
Cicero
In Cicero's time, the prevailing view was that material remedies were paramount, with the mind often neglected in philosophical discourse. Here, he argues for philosophy as a medicine for the mind itself. Unlike remedies for the body, which require external aid, healing the mind demands introspection and reason. Cicero was writing during a period of political turmoil in Rome; his own later years were marked by personal loss and exile. He offers philosophy not merely as abstract thought, but as a practical tool to counteract the mental disturbances that such instability incites.