3 thinkers, books, and ideas connected to this field.
Roman emperor (81–96 CE) who exiled philosophers from Rome — including Epictetus — and whose reign represents the tyranny against which Stoic philosophy's inner freedom was practically tested.
Roman emperor (54–68 CE) who began well under Seneca and Burrus's guidance and ended as a tyrant who murdered his mother and wife, persecuted Christians, and ordered Seneca to commit suicide — making him the historical test case for whether philosophy can restrain political power.
Tarquinius Superbus — Tarquin the Proud — the last Roman king, whose son Sextus Tarquin's rape of Lucretia led to the expulsion of the kings and the founding of the Roman Republic, as narrated by Livy and Shakespeare's poem The Rape of Lucrece.