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Cicero
On Duties Passage 34
Passage 34 of 371
Canonical reference 1.34
Latin
perseus-cicero-de_officiis-lat
Atque in re publica maxime conservanda sunt iura belli. Nam cum sint duo genera decertandi, unum per disceptationem, alterum per vim, cumque illud proprium sit hominis, hoc beluarum, confugiendum est ad posterius, si uti non licet superiore.
English AI-generated translation, non-official
Codex gpt-5.6-sol · Non-official working translation · 2026-09-11
In public affairs, the laws of war must above all be preserved. For there are two ways of settling a contest, one by discussion and the other by force. Since the former is proper to human beings and the latter to beasts, we must resort to the latter only if we are not permitted to use the former.
French AI-generated translation, non-official
Codex gpt-5.6-sol · Non-official working translation · 2026-09-11
Dans les affaires publiques, il faut surtout observer les droits de la guerre. Il existe deux manières de trancher un conflit, l’une par la discussion, l’autre par la force; puisque la première est propre à l’homme et la seconde aux bêtes, on ne doit recourir à cette dernière que s’il n’est pas permis d’employer la première.
Concepts in this passage
Civic duty
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Moral decorum
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Duty
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Moral rightness and utility
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Sin
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