Reviving Classical Philosophy for Modern Leaders

An interview with writer and translator Quintus Curtius

Quintus Curtius is the pen name of writer and translator George J. Thomas. He graduated from M.I.T. in 1990 and served on active duty for a number of years as a U.S. Marine Corps officer with deployed service worldwide. After leaving active duty, he enrolled in law school and began practicing law after graduating in 1998. He resides in Overland Park, Kansas, and can be found at www.qcurtius.com.

His innovative and groundbreaking translations include Cicero's On the Nature of the Gods, Tusculan Disputations, On Moral Ends, On Duties, Stoic Paradoxes, Sallust's The Conspiracy of Catiline and War of Jugurtha, and Cornelius Nepos's Lives of the Great Commanders.

Curtius has also written extensively on moral philosophy, character, ethics, and historical subjects. His essay collections explore questions of character, leadership, and adversity. These books include Centuries, Thirty-Seven, Digest, Pantheon, and Pathways. Using examples from history, personal experience, literature, and philosophy, these unique books have been described as "inexplicably inspiring."

How did you first become interested in this area?

I’ve always been interested in philosophy and classical literature.  With the passage of years, I became more aware of a need to write about the subjects that had long fascinated me.  Regarding my translations, I undertook them because I had long believed that the existing translations of many of the Latin classics were inadequate to meet the needs of the modern reader.    

What are the most important concepts or ideas that you teach others?

My essays deal with a number of consistent themes: the need for virtue, character, endurance, courage in adversity, and the timeless nature of moral rectitude.  These themes imbue almost the entire canon of classical literature, but are never specifically addressed in modern classrooms.  I have believed for a very long time that our modern educational system seriously neglects training in classical virtue and their associated moral qualities.  I have tried to revive these concepts since the publication of my first book of essays in 2014.  I am an ex-military officer, and also have been practicing law as a private attorney and trial lawyer for 25 years.  So I think I have learned something about struggle, character, and endurance, and that I can pass on these lessons to others.

Do you have a favorite quote that you use?

I don’t know if I have one favorite quote. But if I were pressed to name one, it would have to be one that appears in the writings of the Renaissance humanist Bartolomeo Fonzio in 1511:

So advance, fight unflinchingly with steel, and bring to bear standard against standard, weapon against weapon, and chest against chest.  And I, the spectator of your fortitude…will be there, and will honor each of you according to his merits.

I like this quote because it so poetically describes the necessity of struggle if one wishes to achieve anything in life.  And it makes a point of noting that every participant will be honored according to his own merits.

What advice would you give someone who wanted to learn more about what you do?

Anyone wishing to learn more about my work should visit my website at www.qcurtius.com.  There a reader can find links to all my essay collections and translations.  Descriptions of the contents of each book are also included there.  My most recent collections of essays, Digest and Centuries, are quite extensive, and contain a wealth of information for the curious reader.  

Suppose you were able to give a talk or workshop at the original location of Plato’s Academy, in Athens. 

I would be happy to do this.  I am a good teacher, and have a great deal of leadership experience.  I have also been a trial lawyer for 25 years, and know how to convey points to audiences.  

What question would you like to leave us to think about? 

The questions I would like readers to think about is this: 

In what ways are history and philosophy relevant to our lives?  How should we approach their study, and what expectations should we have regarding their study?