Anicius Manlius Severinus Boethius (born c. 475–480 C.E., died 526 C.E.) was a Roman scholar, writer, philosopher, and politician of the Early Middle Ages. An eminent public figure under the Gothic emperor Theodoric and an exceptional Greek scholar, he is best known for *The Consolation of Philosophy*. He aimed to translate the complete works of Aristotle and Plato into Latin and is recognized as a key intermediary between ancient philosophy and the Latin Middle Ages.

Marcus Aurelius (April 26, 121 CE – March 17, 180 CE) was a Roman Emperor (161–180 CE) born into a wealthy patrician family in Rome. Raised by his mother and paternal grandfather after his father's death, he is best known for his *Meditations*, a series of private writings on Stoic philosophy that remain a key source for understanding ancient Stoicism.

Jerome David Salinger was an American author best known for his 1951 novel The Catcher in the Rye.

Adam Smith was a Scottish economist and philosopher who was a pioneer in the field of political economy and key figure during the Scottish Enlightenment.

French aristocrat and political thinker Alexis Charles Henri de Tocqueville transformed how the world understood democracy through his keen observations of 19th-century America.