The political career of Cicero, a great Roman stat...

The political career of Cicero, a great Roman statesman and the most well-known speech maker of his time, was a remarkable one. At the time, high political offices in Rome, though technically achieved by winning elections, were almost exclusively controlled by a group of wealthy noble families that held them for many generations. Cicero’s family, though noble, was not one of them, nor did it have great wealth. But Cicero had a great deal of political ambition; at a very young age he chose as his basic belief the same as Achilles was said to have had: to always be the best and overtop the rest. Lacking the advantage of a proper family origin, there were especially only two career options open to them. One was a military career, since military success was thought to result from exceptional personal qualities and could lead to popularity and therefore political opportunity as was the case much later for American presidents Ulysses S. Grant and Dwight D. Eisenhower. Cicero, however, was no soldier. He hated war, and served in the military only very briefly as a young man.

Instead, Cicero chose a career in the law. To prepare for this career, he studied law, rhetoric, and philosophy. When he felt he was ready, he began taking part in legal cases. A career in the law could lead to political success for several reasons, all of which are still relevant today. First, a lawyer would gain a great deal of experience in making speeches. Second, he could also gain exposure and popularity from cases. Finally, a successful lawyer would build up a network of political connections, which is important now but was even more important in Cicero’s time, when political competition was not conducted along party lines or on the basis of doctrine, but instead was based on loose, shifting networks of personal friendships and commitments. Cicero proved to be an excellent speech-maker and lawyer, and an outstanding politician. He was elected to each of the principal Rome offices on his first try and at the earliest age at which he was legally allowed to run for them.

To win an important office in Cicero’s time, a candidate should______.

A.be born of a wealthy family

B.possess political experience

C.launch a national campaign

D.convince the general public

Cicero came from a family with ______.

A.great wealth

B.remarkable fame

C.political ambition

D.noble background

Unlike Cicero, Ulysses Grant attained his political position due to ______.A.his strong beliefs

B.his personal relations

C.his military achievements

D.his powerful speeches

A Roman politician’s career prospects were strongly influenced by ______.A.their party’s support

B.their social connections

C.their political doctrine

D.their public popularity

Cicero was elected to the principal offices when______.

A.he got support from his friends

B.he began his career as a lawyer

C.he was committed to social services

D.he was just old enough to run for them