Abstract

Known as “the Etruscan” because he was born in the first century after Christ in an important family of Volsinii - the Roman city heir of the Etruscan Velzna - Gaius Musonius Rufus enjoyed great fame and moral prestige both among contemporaries and throughout the late antiquity. Because of the sincerity and the courage with which he faced Nero's persecution and exile, he was termed "the Roman Socrates" and was considered a "perfect life model". His conception of the woman, which reflects the Etruscan cultural background, presents undoubted novelty in relation to the Greek-Roman tradition, while his consideration on sexuality and marriage has had a great influence on the leading Christian authors of the early centuries. Understanding philosophy as a "science of life," Musonius proposes a coherent spiritual elevation practice that involves the body and soul together. An exercise (askesis) to rigor in thinking and frankness in talking, accompanied by vegetarian food, sobriety in dressing and living, cultivating land as an activity more suitable for philosophical life.