The Theory of Moral Sentiments - Adam Smith [255]
Sidney, Algernon (1623-1683), English politician and author whose practical service and writings (most notably the Discourses Concerning Government, pub. 1698) championed republican moral and political principles; he was executed for participation in the Rye House Plot that targeted Charles II.
Simson, Robert (1687-1768), Scottish professor of mathematics who was both Smith’s professor at Glasgow and later his faculty colleague; known for his work on conic sections and his edition of Euclid’s Elements , Hutcheson called him “the best geometer in the world.”
Smith, John (1618-1652), English philosopher and one of the principal Cambridge Platonists; his chief work was his Select Discourses (1660), which examines epistemological questions concerning man’s knowledge of God as well as ethical questions concerning the nature of love.
Socrates (ca. 469-399 BC), Athenian philosopher whose teachings were memorialized by Plato and Xenophon and who was executed for alleged religious heterodoxy and corruption of the city’s youth.
Solon (ca. 630-560 BC), Athenian lawgiver and poet famed for moderation in reforming the severe law code established by Draco, including a series of progressive reforms for debt relief and a more democratic distribution of power.
Sophocles (5th c. BC), Athenian playwright who, with Euripides and Aeschylus, is one of the three principal playwrights of the golden age of Athenian tragedy.
Stewart, Matthew (1717-1785), Scottish professor of mathematics at Edinburgh, and with Smith a former student of Robert Simson.
Sully, Maximilien de Béthune, Duc de (1559-1641), French administrator who advocated a series of progressive economic reforms as minister under Henri IV; his actions are detailed in his memoirs, published in 1638.
Sulpitius (Publius Sulpicius Rufus; ca. 121-88 BC), Roman statesman and orator particularly praised by Cicero for his rhetorical abilities.
Swift, Jonathan (1667-1745), Irish satirist and moralist and Dean of St. Patrick’s, Dublin; Smith engaged with Swift’s literary masterpieces, including his popular novel Gulliver’s Travels (1726), as well as his Anglo-Irish political and economic writings, including Drapier’s Letters (1725).
Tacitus (ca. AD 56-118), Roman historian whose Histories and Annals chronicle Roman politics under the emperors from Tiberius to Domitian; his studies of political intrigue were of particular interest to early modern readers who alternately found in him republican and authoritarian sympathies.
Tamerlane (1337-1405), Turko-Mongol conqueror and founder of central Asian empire.
Themistocles (ca. 524-459 BC) Athenian politician and commander who played a principal role in the Persian Wars; ultimately ostracized from Athens for suspected intrigue with the Persians, he traveled to Asia Minor, where he is thought to have died a natural death as governor of Magnesia.
Theramenes (5th c. BC), Athenian politician and one of the Thirty Tyrants established in Athens after its defeat by Sparta in 404 BC; his moderation was despised by the hard-line oligarchists who had him put to death.
Thomson, James (1700-1748), Scottish poet who composed plays on classical themes but whose principal fame rests on The Seasons (1730).
Tibullus (ca. 55-19 BC), Roman poet whose works focus on romantic love and the pleasures of rural life and psychological tranquility.
Tigranes II (1st c. AD), king of Armenia and head of empire in Syria until defeat by Roman expedition commanded by Lucullus and then by Pompey in AD 66.
Timoleon (4th c. BC), Corinthian commander renowned for deposing Syracusan and Sicilian tyrants and for his victory over Carthage.
Turenne, Henri de La Tour d’Auvergne, Vicomte de (1611-1675), celebrated French commander under Louis XIV whose genius was displayed in a series of successful campaigns throughout the Thirty Years’ War, the Fronde, and the Dutch War.
Ulysses