Seneca

Lucius Annaeus Seneca (4BCE-65CE) was a Roman Stoic philosopher, dramatist, and advisor to Emperor Nero. Margaret Graver is the Aaron Lawrence Professor in Classics at Dartmouth College. Her publications include Cicero on the Emotions: Tusculan Disputations 3 and 4; Stoicism and Emotion; and, in collaboration with A.A. Long, a complete translation of Seneca's Letters on Ethics. A.A. Long is chancellor's professor of classics emeritus and affiliated professor of philosophy at the University of California, Berkeley. His books include Greek Models of Mind and Self and Epictetus: How to be Free.

"The letters’ intimate voice, their accessibility, and their focus on everyday challenges make the letters relevant for readers of all ages and academic levels. In addition, explanatory notes at the end of the book add depth and offer clarification for readers unfamiliar with Seneca or Stoic philosophy. A good representative sample of Seneca’s letters, Fifty Letters is an approachable text and a good introduction to Roman Stoicism. . . . Recommended."

• PrefaceIntroductionMargaret Graver and A. A. LongFifty Letters1 Taking charge of your time2 A beneficial reading program3 Trusting one’s friends6 Intimacy within friendship7 Avoiding the crowd8 Writing as a form of service9 Friendship and self-sufficiency11 Blushing12 Visiting a childhood home14 Safety in a dangerous world15 Exercises for the body and the voice16 Daily study and practice18 The Saturnalia festival20 Consistency21 How reading can make you famous23 Real joy is a serious matter30 An Epicurean on his deathbed31 Our mind’s godlike potential33 The use of philosophical maxims38 Fewer words achieve more40 Oratory and the philosopher41 God dwells within us46 A book by Lucilius47 The evils of slavery49 Remembering old times53 A bad experience at sea54 A near-fatal asthma attack56 Noisy lodgings above a bathhouse57 A dark tunnel58 A conversation about Plato63 Consolation for the death of a friend65 Some analyses of causation70 Ending one’s own life75 What it means to make progress76 Only the honorable is good79 A trip around Sicily brings thoughts of glory83 Heavy drinking84 The writer’s craft86 The rustic villa of Scipio Africanus90 The beginnings of civilization91 A terrible fire at Lyon97 A trial in the time of Cicero104 Why travel cannot set you free108 Vegetarianism and the use of literature112 A difficult pupil113 Is a virtue an animate creature?116 The Stoic view of emotion121 Self-awareness in animate creatures123 Resisting external influences124 The criterion for the human goodNotesTextual NotesBibliographyIndex