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/lit/ - Literature

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11514421 No.11514421 [Reply] [Original]

''On Anger'' is fantastic. Why did no one tell me Seneca was so good?

>> No.11514564

>>11514421

He's absurdly underrated. His works are full of gems, and these gems are often readily applicable.

>> No.11514571
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11514571

>>11514421
FUCK YEA BOIII!!! THATS THE REAL SHIT NIGGA!!!!111

>> No.11514575
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11514575

Have a /lit/ Seneca bit. On the house.

>> No.11514578
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11514578

>>11514421
Not another r/stoicism thread.

>> No.11514591
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11514591

>>11514578

Why they do this to us?

>> No.11514596

If I had to pick between the two of them - and those two works in particular - I’d probably go with Seneca’s Letters. Don’t get me wrong - I love both of those authors, and in my own work and teaching about Stoicism, I draw upon both of them. But if it’s really about introducing someone to Stoicism, I’d give Seneca’s Letters a slight edge over Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations.

I’ll add that if my goal for the learner is to develop a really solid and systematic understanding of Stoic philosophy, principles, and practices - I actually direct them to works by two other authors - Epictetus and Cicero.

There is absolutely no substitute - if your goal is to study Stoicism - for tackling Epictetus’ Discourses. And some of Cicero’s works - particularly On Duties, On The Ends, and Tusculan Disputations - while dense and sometimes tough - are indispensable sources for knowing what the classic Stoics actually thought about key topics.

Why then settle on Seneca’s Letters? There’s more being discussed - both in terms of length and in terms of topics - in that work than in the Meditations. (If something short is what you want, then just read Epictetus’ Enchiridion!)

I also tend to think that, if the goal is to introduce a total beginner to a pretty comprehensive philosophical perspective - rather than just giving them an assortment of stuff to pick through - the Letters suits that goal better. The Meditations has some great stuff, but it’s pretty unorganized - as you’d expect it to be, since it’s Aurelius’ own discourse with himself over time. With the Letters, Seneca will sometimes go into digressions, but at least each letter is more or less on one topic or just a few topics.

>https://www.quora.com/Which-do-you-like-better-as-an-introduction-to-Stoicism-Seneca-letters-of-a-stoic-or-Marcus-Aurelius-Meditations/answer/Greg-Sadler-7

>> No.11514599

>>11514575
which of his works is that from?

>> No.11514618

>>11514599
nvm it's from ON THE TRANQUILITY OF THE MIND

>> No.11514649
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11514649

>>11514618

That's right.
It's in this volume of the Chicago Seneca in case it matters.

>> No.11514661
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11514661

Brutal

>> No.11514682

>>11514661
Will /stack/ ever recover?

>> No.11514690

FUCKING STOICFAGS GET OUUUUUT

>> No.11514800

>>11514690
I have no control over your opinion therefore I won't let it bother me.

>> No.11514858

>>11514421
This is a shit thread and if you had actually read Seneca you wouldn't have posted it.

>> No.11514930

Are the stoics any relevant in Metaphysics?

>> No.11514936

>>11514930
>Are the stoics any relevant
no

>> No.11514940

>>11514690
shhh

>> No.11514969

>>11514936
That's what I expected. I've started with the greeks, moving to Plotinus soon. Probably going to skip them.

>> No.11514976

>>11514575
Damn he would use an e-reader