Final answer:
Augustine's self-criticism for mourning Dido is tied to Roman stoicism's influence on emotions, whereas Cicero's personal sorrow over his daughter's death contrasts with public expectations of emotional restraint.
Step-by-step explanation:
Augustine critizices himself for mourning Dido upon reading Virgil's Aeneid because he views such emotions towards fictional characters as misplaced. He sees this as an example of how his feelings were influenced by literature, rather than more substantial, spiritual concerns. Cicero, reflecting on his personal loss, has similar conflicts with public perceptions of Roman stoicism.
The societal expectation was for a Roman man to be restrained in the expression of emotions. Cicero's grief over his daughter Tullia's death, highlighted in his correspondence with friends and in critiques by figures like Sulpicius, reveals a tension between personal sorrow and public decorum.
These ancient Roman attitudes towards emotions and public perception are a subject of ongoing discussion. On one hand, the virtues of stoicism and restraint were highly valued, while on the other, the genuine human experience of grief and loss poses a challenge to such norms. Sulpicius, for instance, exemplifies the Roman ideal by admonishing Cicero not to mourn excessively, referencing the wider calamities that befell the Roman state and seeming to downplay the personal aspect of loss.