'Two things alone I long for: first, that when I die I may leave the Roman people free...and second, that each person's fate may reflect the way he has behaved towards his country.' Cicero (106-43 BC) was the greatest orator of the ancient world and a leading politician of the closing era of the Roman republic. This book presents nine speeches which reflect the development, variety, and drama of his political career,among them two speeches from his prosecution of Verres, a corrupt and cruel governor of Sicily; four speeches against the conspirator Catiline; and the Second Philippic, the famous denunciation of Mark Antony which cost Cicero his life. Also included are On the Command of Gnaeus Pompeius, in which he praises the military successes of Pompey, and For Marcellus, a panegyric in praise of the dictator Julius Caesar. These new translations preserve Cicero's rhetorical brilliance and achieve new standards of accuracy. A general introduction outlines Cicero's public career, and separate introductions explain the political significance of each of the speeches. Together with its companion volume, Defence Speeches, this edition provides an unparalleled sampling of Cicero's oratorical achievements.

This book contains over fifty passages of Latin from 200 BC to AD 900, each with translation and linguistic commentary. It is not intended as an elementary reader (though suitable for university courses), but as an illustrative history of Latin covering more than a millennium, with almost every century represented. Conventional histories cite constructions out of context, whereas this work gives a sense of the period, genre, stylistic aims and idiosyncrasies of specific passages. 'Informal' texts, particularly if they portray talk, reflect linguistic variety and change better than texts adhering to classicising norms. Some of the texts are recent discoveries or little known. Writing tablets are well represented, as are literary and technical texts down to the early medieval period, when striking changes appear. The commentaries identify innovations, discontinuities and phenomena of long duration. Readers will learn much about the diversity and development of Latin.

Two Athenian Citizens - fed up with the unending litigiousness of their compatriots - leave the hustle-and-bustle of the City to seek a better life... Coming upon the mythical king Tereus - a man whom the gods had turned into "the Hoopoe" - they decide to found a new city, with him, among the birds: Cloudcuckooland... Here, for the first time, even those without the mastery of Ancient Greek will come as close as the Greeks themselves to speaking the language of the gods, and to understanding the songs of birds... This book offers all those wishing to read, sing, play, or study Aristophanes' Birds - his most celebrated masterpiece - all that they need to truly appreciate the genius of the original: a lively and modern text offering two complimentary versions of the play - one in fleetfooted verse, where much once obscure has been stood to reason by a few carefully concocted rhymes - and a second, a near-verbatim interlineal, woven into a curated copy of the original Attic Greek. Like its forerunner in this series - the Peace "worth more than the paper it's printed on" - this volume includes a customized glossary of explanatory notes, offering tidbits and insights once only ever glimpsed from the dizzying heights of Cloudcuckooland itself... Oh, and a warning: This book contains fowl language.