Hardship and Happiness

by Seneca, Elaine Fantham (Translator), Harry M. Hine (Translator)

Lucius Annaeus Seneca (4 BCE–65 CE) was a Roman Stoic philosopher, dramatist, statesman, and advisor to the emperor Nero, all during the Silver Age of Latin literature. The Complete Works of Lucius Annaeus Seneca is a fresh and compelling series of new English-language translations of his works in eight accessible volumes. Edited by Elizabeth Asmis, Shadi Bartsch, and Martha C. Nussbaum, this engaging collection helps restore Seneca—whose works have been highly praised by modern authors from Desiderius Erasmus to Ralph Waldo Emerson—to his rightful place among the classical writers most widely studied in the humanities.

Hardship and Happiness  collects a range of essays intended to instruct, from consolations—works that offer comfort to someone who has suffered a personal loss—to pieces on how to achieve happiness or tranquility in the face of a difficult world. Expertly translated, the essays will be read and used by undergraduate philosophy students and experienced scholars alike.

Genres: Philosophy, Nonfiction, Classics, Self Help, Ancient, Ancient History

352 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 64

About the author

Lucius 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.

Reviews

[Mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

What need is there to shed tears over life’s individual stages? For the whole of life requires tears.

Started this one just before my brother’s funeral following his untimely, accidental, and utterly pointless death. It had been high up in my TBR list, so I went in for a long wade in the cold, unadorned stoicism fountain at the worst point in my life to date.

It was foolish to clutch at philosophy at such a time, when nothing at all can help make sense of the senseless randomness of this shitty, fucking existence that refuses to let me go just yet. I’ve leaned stoic all my life, but Seneca was largely lost on me.

Despite all that, this here’s some solid advice.

[Illiterate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Seneca promotes happiness, reason, nature but ties them to self-denial, natural law, God. No wonder Christians try to claim him.

[Kasandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can't believe all these years I have somehow managed to read no Stoic philosophy until now. Couldn't have picked a better text/translation/edition to start. Each essay starts with an explanation of the historical context, translation choices, etc. Reading Seneca I often found myself nodding my head along, laughing, tearing up, and at times totally understanding why some of his contemporaries criticized him as a hypocrite. Maybe that's inevitable when you're doing applied ethics because life is paradoxical. I don't know I'd want to live my life according to Stoic values but I do feel wiser having read it. My favorite essay was "On the Shortness of Life" which can be summarized as "life isn't too short people just waste their time". You have to appreciate that degree of candor.

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

Solid translation and intros. Includes some of seneca's more interesting work

[ExtraGravy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Solid academic presentation of familiar Seneca writings.

[ForestGardenGal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anthology of the following essays by Seneca, translated into modern English.

Consolation to Marcia (HARRY M. HINE, translator)
Consolation to Helvia (GARETH D. WILLIAMS, transl.)
Consolation to Polybius (HARRY M. HINE, transl.)
On the Shortness of Life (GARETH D. WILLIAMS, transl.)
On the Constancy of the Wise Person (JAMES KER, transl.)
On Tranquility of Mind (ELAINE FANTHAM, transl.)
On Leisure (GARETH D. WILLIAMS, transl.)
On the Happy Life (JAMES KER, transl.)
On Providence (JAMES KER, transl.)

I found this anthology contained excellent new translations, and each translator provided an introduction to each essay explaining to whom the essay was addressed, the purpose of the writing and the literary devices and tools of rhetoric used, as well as any historical and political context useful to the reader or clarification of difficult passages- all of which was a very beneficial addition to the text.

I highly recommend this Seneca anthology for anyone interested in a deep dive into the philosophy of Stoicism (and not the watered down commercially popular life-hack "Stoicism" that has become so recently popular.)

PG for dense philosophical topics, including slavery, grief, and suicide. Translated into English from the ancient Roman. No sex, language, or graphic violence.

[Christian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some good essays that are easy to read thanks to great translations. I also liked the introductory info about Seneca and the world he lived in, plus notes on his influence. I thought the historical criticism of him being hypocritical was interesting. He was rich, active in politics, and held an important position, but spoke against those things a lot. His response to the criticism was one of my favorite quotes: "I am not wise, and, just to nourish your ill will: I will not be wise. Demand from me, then, not that I am equal to the best but that I am better than the bad. It is enough for me to subtract something from my vices each day and to chastise my own mistakes."

[Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

On losing a loved one:

"it is hard to lose a young man whom you have raised, just when he was beginning to lend help and distinction to his mother and father. Who would deny it is hard? But it is human. You were born for this, to suffer loss, to perish, to hope and to fear, to upset others and yourself, to dread death yet also desire it, and, worst of all, never to understand your true condition"

woof, lots of gems like this to be found in this collection of letters from Seneca to his friends.

11/10 will re read

[Don Putnam · Rating 5 out of 5]

While there is a lot of extraneous content, there are so many high-quality quotes and ideas from Seneca.

This book also contains a lot of Seneca's own self-defense to claims he is hypocritical. He expounds on the need to live a life of hardship, yet he was one of the most wealthy men alive at the time. He strongly pushes against this claim, defending the need of anyone and everyone to advance the goodness of virtue.

[Michael Baranowski · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm very glad that the University of Chicago Press has come out with wonderful new translations of Seneca's work. He's not my favorite Stoic - his writing is too flowery and extended for me (especially compared with that of Epictetus, who *us* my favorite Stoic), but that aside, his style is readable, elegant, and filled without sage advice.

[Joshua Green · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the two best books of Stoic thought I've ever read, along with P.E. Matheson's Oxford-published edition of Epictetus's Discourses and Manual. Excellent translation and an essential selection of writings. Each individual work is accessible and engaging, and a handful of them are remarkable gems of insight. Like Epictetus, Seneca is sometimes quite funny, too (really!).

[Abhishek Upadhayay · Rating 5 out of 5]

One must read.

[Usman Bayero · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very engaging & practically applicable.

[Rafael Dapuzzo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Don’t skip the introductions!

[Mojo Obala · Rating 5 out of 5]

life changing book. seneca ties everything to reason.

[Vikram Kumar · Rating 5 out of 5]

These are absolutely beautiful translations of Seneca's dialogues. They come with notes and introductions presenting the arguments and textual problems present in the dialogues. The translators themselves are formidable Classicists, who also turn out to be sublime writers. If you want to get the most out of Seneca - read this series!

[Alexander Asay · Rating 5 out of 5]

UGA (Instructor): Introduction to Philosophy