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Moral Essays: Volume II
Lucius Annaeus Seneca, born at Corduba (Cordova) c.4 BCE, of a prominent & wealthy family, spent an ailing childhood & youth at Rome in an aunt's care. He became famous in rhetoric, philosophy, money-making & imperial service. After some disgrace during Claudius' reign he became tutor & then, in 54, advising minister to Nero, some of whose worst misdeeds he didn't prevent. Involved (innocently?) in a conspiracy, he killed himself by order in 65. Wealthy, he preached indifference to wealth; evader of pain & death, he preached scorn of both; & there were other contrasts between practice & principle. We have his philosophical or moral essays (10 traditionally called Dialogues) on providence, steadfastness, the happy life, anger, leisure, tranquility, the brevity of life, gift-giving, forgiveness & treatises on natural phenomena. Also extant are 124 epistles, in which he writes in a relaxed style about moral & ethical questions, relating them to personal experiences; a skit on the official deification of Claudius, "Apocolocyntosis" (Loeb #15); & nine rhetorical tragedies on ancient Greek themes. Many epistles & all speeches are lost.
512 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 63
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About the author
Seneca
2,708 books3,879 followersLucius Annaeus Seneca (often known simply as Seneca or Seneca the Younger); ca. 4 BC – 65 AD) was a Roman Stoic philosopher, statesman, and dramatist of the Silver Age of Latin literature. He was tutor and later advisor to emperor Nero, who later forced him to commit suicide for alleged complicity in the Pisonian conspiracy to have him assassinated.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
February 23, 2020
When I read the first volume of Seneca's moral essays translated by John W Basore in 2018, I was completely blown away and read the whole thing pretty quickly.
I've read this second volume a section at a time over a much longer period, and don't think I got quite as much out of it as with the 'total immersion' approach of the first volume. The slightly dated language takes some getting used to. The print quality in some parts of my copy wasn't great, which took me out of the moment a few times.
All of that said, this was still brilliant.
Some quotes I noted along the way:
---
I know what you are saying: "You forget that you are giving comfort to a woman; the examples you cite are of men." But who has asserted that Nature has dealt grudgingly with women's natures and has narrowly restricted their virtues? Believe me, they have just as much force, just as much capacity, if they like, for virtuous action; they are just as able to endure suffering and toil when they are accustomed to them.
---
To all of us, Nature says: "I deceive no one. If you bear sons, it may be that they will be handsome, it may be that they will be ugly; perchance they will be born dumb. Some of them, it may be, will be the saviour of his country, or as likely its betrayer. It is not beyond hope that they will win so much esteem that out of regard for them none will venture to speak evil of you; yet bear in mind, too, that they may sink to such great infamy that they themselves will become your curse." If, after these conditions have been set forth, you bring forth children, you must free the gods from all blame; for they have made you no promises.
---
There is no need for you to hurry to the tomb of your son; what lies there is his basest part and a part that in life was the source of much trouble—bones and ashes are no more parts of him than were his clothes and the other protections of his body. He is complete—leaving nothing of himself behind, he has fled away and wholly departed from earth.
---
Wherever there is a human being there is the opportunity for a kindness.
I've read this second volume a section at a time over a much longer period, and don't think I got quite as much out of it as with the 'total immersion' approach of the first volume. The slightly dated language takes some getting used to. The print quality in some parts of my copy wasn't great, which took me out of the moment a few times.
All of that said, this was still brilliant.
Some quotes I noted along the way:
---
I know what you are saying: "You forget that you are giving comfort to a woman; the examples you cite are of men." But who has asserted that Nature has dealt grudgingly with women's natures and has narrowly restricted their virtues? Believe me, they have just as much force, just as much capacity, if they like, for virtuous action; they are just as able to endure suffering and toil when they are accustomed to them.
---
To all of us, Nature says: "I deceive no one. If you bear sons, it may be that they will be handsome, it may be that they will be ugly; perchance they will be born dumb. Some of them, it may be, will be the saviour of his country, or as likely its betrayer. It is not beyond hope that they will win so much esteem that out of regard for them none will venture to speak evil of you; yet bear in mind, too, that they may sink to such great infamy that they themselves will become your curse." If, after these conditions have been set forth, you bring forth children, you must free the gods from all blame; for they have made you no promises.
---
There is no need for you to hurry to the tomb of your son; what lies there is his basest part and a part that in life was the source of much trouble—bones and ashes are no more parts of him than were his clothes and the other protections of his body. He is complete—leaving nothing of himself behind, he has fled away and wholly departed from earth.
---
Wherever there is a human being there is the opportunity for a kindness.
March 28, 2014
You can't help but quietly think to yourself that Seneca loves the sound of his own voice / (words), but whilst continuing to read, you begin to understand why this is justified. The way he builds up and hammers his point home is pretty extraordinary, and you find yourself thinking more deeply than you ever thought possible over over his philosophising.
His reasoning is like a breath of fresh air in this over-individualistic, Machiavellian and desire-led country that we live in.
If, like me, you ever get periods in your life where the world seems like an alien place and you need something to give you grounding and sustenance, then read this. It's like therapy on a stick. :)
His reasoning is like a breath of fresh air in this over-individualistic, Machiavellian and desire-led country that we live in.
If, like me, you ever get periods in your life where the world seems like an alien place and you need something to give you grounding and sustenance, then read this. It's like therapy on a stick. :)
October 30, 2011
Seneca is a brilliant writer and sometimes his writings are amazing in their insights.I really found the incident of the philospher Stilbo very thought provoking and I thought long and deeply over it.Stilbo reply to the Tyrant who had destroyed his country,dishonoured his daughters and seized all his possesions when the tyrant asked him if he had lost anything..He replied he had lost "nothing" for all he needed was there with him..as his virtue and good character were still with him which no man could take away.
February 6, 2009
Re-read after many years, I find Seneca's Stoicism speaks far more to me than I ever had imagined.
February 20, 2021
Masterpiece!
August 1, 2025
Initially De Vita Beata debunked my impression of Stoicism from the first volume by offering a positive account of a Stoic good life:
“The happy life, therefore, is a life that is in harmony with its own nature, and it can be attained in only one way. First of all, we must have a sound mind and one that is in constant possession of its sanity; second, it must be courageous and energetic, and, too, capable of the noblest fortitude, ready for every emergency, careful of the body and of all that concerns it, but without anxiety; lastly, it must be attentive to all the advantages that adorn life, but with over-much love for none - the user, but not the slave, of the gifts of Fortune. You understand, even if I do not say more, that, when once we have driven away all that excites or affrights us, there ensues unbroken tranquillity and enduring freedom; for when pleasures and fears have been banished, then, in place of all that is trivial and fragile and harmful just because of the evil it works, there comes upon us first a boundless joy that is firm and unalterable, then peace and harmony of the soul and true greatness coupled with kindliness; for all ferocity is born from weakness.”
But then there seems to be a retreat:
“For what prevents us from saying that the happy life is to have a mind that is freet, lofty, fearless and steadfast - a mind that is placed beyond the reach of fear, beyond the reach of desire, that counts virtue the only good, baseness the only evil, and all else but a worthless mass of things, which come and go without increasing or diminishing the highest good, and neither subtract any part from the happy life nor add any part to it?”
So can we, or can we not, get any genuine good or pleasure from the gifts of fortune? If they genuinely don’t increase or diminish the highest good, then why engage with them at all? Why are some preferred? Seneca wants to claim virtue is the only good, but also allow there to be other lesser goods.
Honestly this all just seems like a reprisal of Plato, but this time deterministic, with some of Aristotle’s virtues imported
On specific essays:
- De Consolatione Ad Marciam - extremely beautiful at times, especially near the end. Effective at consoling. But perhaps all a ploy for Seneca to prove that he was not aligned with Sejanus?
- De Vita Beata - I was looking forward to this one the most - ultimately pretty contradictory (as I mentioned above). Also did not actually give a good reason why virtue is the only good, or define virtue or how to pursue it
- De Otio - didn’t seem to land on a firm conclusion - both action and contemplation is good? But contemplation is better? But you should still include action if you can?
- De Tranquillitate - tactical advice on how to gain and maintain tranquility. Useful enough, quite obvious
- De Brevitate Vitae - written to save face for his father-in-law who was losing standing in court. But also how I view my own life in the face of inevitable death. Though he, like many other philosophers, cops out and says the only worthwhile use of time is philosophy, without actually justifying it. Of course a philosopher is going to say that
- De Consolatione Ad Polybium - flattery of Claudius to return to Rome from exile (failed, embarrassment). Same ideas as the former consolation, nothing new
- De Consolatione Ad Helvium the same
“The happy life, therefore, is a life that is in harmony with its own nature, and it can be attained in only one way. First of all, we must have a sound mind and one that is in constant possession of its sanity; second, it must be courageous and energetic, and, too, capable of the noblest fortitude, ready for every emergency, careful of the body and of all that concerns it, but without anxiety; lastly, it must be attentive to all the advantages that adorn life, but with over-much love for none - the user, but not the slave, of the gifts of Fortune. You understand, even if I do not say more, that, when once we have driven away all that excites or affrights us, there ensues unbroken tranquillity and enduring freedom; for when pleasures and fears have been banished, then, in place of all that is trivial and fragile and harmful just because of the evil it works, there comes upon us first a boundless joy that is firm and unalterable, then peace and harmony of the soul and true greatness coupled with kindliness; for all ferocity is born from weakness.”
But then there seems to be a retreat:
“For what prevents us from saying that the happy life is to have a mind that is freet, lofty, fearless and steadfast - a mind that is placed beyond the reach of fear, beyond the reach of desire, that counts virtue the only good, baseness the only evil, and all else but a worthless mass of things, which come and go without increasing or diminishing the highest good, and neither subtract any part from the happy life nor add any part to it?”
So can we, or can we not, get any genuine good or pleasure from the gifts of fortune? If they genuinely don’t increase or diminish the highest good, then why engage with them at all? Why are some preferred? Seneca wants to claim virtue is the only good, but also allow there to be other lesser goods.
Honestly this all just seems like a reprisal of Plato, but this time deterministic, with some of Aristotle’s virtues imported
On specific essays:
- De Consolatione Ad Marciam - extremely beautiful at times, especially near the end. Effective at consoling. But perhaps all a ploy for Seneca to prove that he was not aligned with Sejanus?
- De Vita Beata - I was looking forward to this one the most - ultimately pretty contradictory (as I mentioned above). Also did not actually give a good reason why virtue is the only good, or define virtue or how to pursue it
- De Otio - didn’t seem to land on a firm conclusion - both action and contemplation is good? But contemplation is better? But you should still include action if you can?
- De Tranquillitate - tactical advice on how to gain and maintain tranquility. Useful enough, quite obvious
- De Brevitate Vitae - written to save face for his father-in-law who was losing standing in court. But also how I view my own life in the face of inevitable death. Though he, like many other philosophers, cops out and says the only worthwhile use of time is philosophy, without actually justifying it. Of course a philosopher is going to say that
- De Consolatione Ad Polybium - flattery of Claudius to return to Rome from exile (failed, embarrassment). Same ideas as the former consolation, nothing new
- De Consolatione Ad Helvium the same
September 8, 2017
"Quod ad ipsam Fortunam pertinet, etiam si nunc agi apud te causa eius non potest — omnia enim illa, quae nobis dedit, ob hoc ipsum, quod aliquid eripuit, invisa sunt —, tunc tamen erit agenda, cum primum aequiorem te illi iudicem dies fecerit; tunc enim poteris in gratiam cum illa redire. Nam multa providit, quibus hanc emendaret iniuriam, multa etiamnunc dabit, quibus redimat; denique ipsum hoc, quod abstulit, ipsa dederat tibi. Noli ergo contra te ingenio uti tuo, noli adesse dolori tuo. Potest quidem eloquentia tua quae parva sunt adprobare pro magnis, rursus magna attenuare et ad minima deducere; sed alio istas vires servet suas, nunc tota se in solacium tuum conferat. Et tamen dispice, ne hoc iam quoque ipsum sit supervacuum; aliquid enim a nobis natura exigit, plus vanitate contrahitur. Numquam autem ego a te, ne ex toto maereas, exigam. Et scio inveniri quosdam durae magis quam fortis prudentiae viros, qui negent doliturum esse sapientem: hi non videntur mihi umquam in eiusmodi casum incidisse, alioquin excussisset illis fortuna superbam sapientiam et ad confessionem eos veri etiam invitos compulisset. Satis praestiterit ratio, si id unum ex dolore, quod et superest et abundat, exciderit: ut quidem nullum omnino esse eum patiatur, nec sperandum ulli nec concupiscendum est. Hunc potius modum servet, qui nec impietatem imitetur nec insaniam et nos in eo teneat habitu, qui et piae mentis est nec motae: fluant lacrimae, sed eaedem et desinant, trahantur ex imo gemitus pectore, sed idem et finantur; sic rege animum tuum, ut et sapientibus te adprobare possis et fratribus. Effice, ut frequenter fratris tui memoriam tibi velis occurrere, ut illum et sermonibus celebres et adsidua recordatione repraesentes tibi, quod ita demum consequi poteris, si tibi memoriam eius iucundam magis quam flebilem feceris; naturale est enim, ut semper animus ab eo refugiat, ad quod cum tristitia revertitur. Cogita modestiam eius, cogita in rebus agendis sollertiam, in exsequendis industriam, in promissis constantiam. Omnia dicta eius ac facta et aliis expone et tibimet ipse commemora. Qualis fuerit cogita qualisque sperari potuerit: quid enim de illo non tuto sponderi fratre posset?
Haec, utcumque potui, longo iam situ obsoleto et hebetato animo composui. Quae si aut parum respondere ingenio tuo aut parum mederi dolori videbuntur, cogita, quam non possit is alienae vacare consolationi, quem sua mala occupatum tenent, et quam non facile Latina ei homini verba succurrant, quem barbarorum inconditus et barbaris quoque humanioribus gravis fremitus circumsonat."
Haec, utcumque potui, longo iam situ obsoleto et hebetato animo composui. Quae si aut parum respondere ingenio tuo aut parum mederi dolori videbuntur, cogita, quam non possit is alienae vacare consolationi, quem sua mala occupatum tenent, et quam non facile Latina ei homini verba succurrant, quem barbarorum inconditus et barbaris quoque humanioribus gravis fremitus circumsonat."
September 24, 2016
Excellent. If you know something about Rome, it's even better. If you don't, it'll still teach you and arm you with much wisdom for facing today, tomorrow, And the rest of your life.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews