Cicero's Oratio In Catiline

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Cicero, in his first Oratio in Catilinam, makes a clear distinction between the Roman deity Fortune and the inanimate, impersonal fortune to differentiate Catiline’s luck from his conspirators’ immorality. Cicero calls Catiline’s followers “abandoned by all of Fortune,” insinuating that the goddess Fortune, a famed Roman deity, judged these men so vile that she deserted them intentionally (“ab omni… Fortuna… derelictis”)(85). By proclaiming the name of the goddess and using “ab” to create an ablative of personal agent, Cicero suggests a choice made by a just, impartial deity to forsake Catiline's conspirators. On the other hand, Cicero notes that “fortune saved” Catiline without evoking personification of the goddess Fortune (“fortuna servavit”)(85).

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