Q0384
“We are not born for ourselves alone.” — Cicero (De Officiis I.22)
Verified English quotation. Primary source: De Officiis I.22. Theme: morality.
English
We are not born for ourselves alone.
Source and attribution
The archive attributes this English wording to De Officiis I.22 and files it under Stoicism. That locator distinguishes the passage from loose internet attributions: readers can return to the named work or section to check translation, surrounding argument, and edition-specific wording.
About Cicero
Marcus Tullius Cicero (106–43 BCE) was Rome’s greatest orator and a statesman who transmitted Greek philosophy into Latin prose. Caught in the Republic’s death throes, he opposed Caesar’s assassins’ enemies and was killed in the proscriptions.
Interpretation
Cicero is stating the Stoic premise behind his account of duty: human beings are fitted for association, so a life lived only for oneself is a life lived against one's own nature. The claim is not altruistic in the modern sense — he argues that serving the common good is also what secures one's own standing. The argument is the basis of the whole work, in which apparent conflicts between advantage and duty are meant to be resolved by showing they coincide.
Why it matters
It reframes self-interest rather than denying it: the question becomes what kind of creature you are, since the good available to you depends on the answer.
Concepts in this quote
- Morality
- Morality in philosophy concerns right and wrong, obligation, and the standards by which we judge persons and acts.
- Community
- Community appears in this archive as a live philosophical concern—not a slogan. These verified English passages show how thinkers treat community as a problem of judgment, practice, or explanation.
- Responsibility
- Responsibility asks what we answer for—our choices, omissions, institutions, and the futures we help create.
How to cite this quotation
APA: Cicero. (n.d.). We are not born for ourselves alone. In Philosophy Blind Box. https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0384
MLA: Cicero. “We are not born for ourselves alone..” Philosophy Blind Box, https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0384.
Chicago: Cicero. “We are not born for ourselves alone..” Philosophy Blind Box. Accessed 2026. https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0384.
Frequently asked questions
What is the source of the quotation “We are not born for ourselves alone.”?
The passage is attributed to Cicero, De Officiis I.22. The archive attributes this English wording to De Officiis I.22 and files it under Stoicism. That locator distinguishes the passage from loose internet attributions: readers can return to the named work or section to check translation, surrounding argument, and edition-specific wording.
What does Cicero mean by morality?
Moral philosophy asks whether morality is objective, how reasons bind us, and how character, rules, and consequences relate. Traditions differ on whether duty, virtue, or outcomes come first. This passage enters that discussion through morality, community, responsibility.