Fides Essay

Fides comes from the Latin word that means faith. However, the roman concept of fides does not have much to do with the meaning faith. To the Romans, Fides had to do with the character of any public figure. It meant trustworthiness or reliability. As Abraham Lincoln and Cicero went through their lives and careers, they had to maintain fides with the people.

Abraham Lincoln, The United States’ Sixteenth president, rose from humble origins to the nation’s highest office. When he was growing up his family was poor and he was not able to receive a good education. He only had about a year of formal schooling. However, he had a passion for learning and he didn’t let his family’s social class become and obstacle. He would make his own arithmetic textbooks and read almost anything he could find. However, one of the only books he could get his hands on was the bible. His family was not religious and did not attend church, but he was very familiar with the bible. His humble beginnings made him popular amongst the people when he ran for president. People felt like he could relate to them more thoroughly since he grew up poor.

Aside from his reading and arithmetic, Lincoln showed great potential as a speaker from a very young age. He would imitate preachers and politicians and even tell stories to entertain people. Later in life his inspirations for speaking became Shakespeare, and a Scottish poet named Robert Burns. His speaking talents influenced him later in life when he delivered his many speeches including the Gettysburg Address.

When Lincoln left home he moved to New Salem and became a surveyor. He was becoming interested in politics, especially the subject of slavery, so he ran for state legislature in 1834.When he was elected into...

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...Maintain Fides with the people throughout his political career by gaining their trust through his speeches and court cases. The people also maintained Fides with Cicero as they supported him through all his obstacles as a politician.

Cicero and Lincoln had many similarities. They both were against slavery. Lincoln issued the emancipation proclamation to end it, and Cicero freed his slave and formed a close bond with him. Lincoln and Cicero were also very good at speaking. Cicero’s famous speech was Pro Archia, which he delivered during a court case. Lincoln’s famous speech was the Gettysburg Address, which he delivered during the Civil War. Lincoln and Cicero were also both assassinated.

Overall, Cicero and Lincoln had to maintain a sense of fides with the people as well as those they worked with. They were able to do this, and were very popular during their time.