Breakfast with Seneca
I’ve been grappling with stoic philosophy for a few years now, and as much as I appreciate modern Stoicism in general, I have started feeling like there were too many books that tread the same territory using different words and editing The cohesiveness of stoic philosophy to suit they’re particular taste. And while that can be useful for some, it irritated me.
This is one of two books I don’t really feel is guilty of that. This paints a pretty holistic picture of the way Seneca thought of his philosophy, as well as maintaining his pension toward philosophical eclecticism. This is another “stoicism for beginners” book. But what his book does differently, is what I think makes it more valuable than a lot of others. It dives into Seneca specifically, only using other sources incidentally where it helps elucidate Seneca’s points.
The other thing is that it doesn’t shy away from the Roman conception of Stoic cosmopolitanism, reducing the philosophy to a series of life hacks, nor does it shy away from the stoic conception of the logos, fate, the gods, etc.
Personally, I found my way back to philosophy in general, and Stoicism more specifically after spending a year in therapy, specifically engaged in cognitive behavioral therapy. And I found that while the therapeutic protocol itself was very helpful, after I “graduated“ I wondered where all of these techniques, clinically glorified versions of the life hack version of stoic philosophy, fit into a larger framework. So I began to study. I begin to rebuild who I was into who I wanted to be.
If I had had this book from the beginning, that process would’ve gone far more smoothly. I have always found Seneca to be the most approachable of the big three, by himself, and this book makes him all the more approachable. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who is interested in stoic philosophy, or in the way Seneca sees it. This is definitely a great way to start the day! This is one of two of the best introductions to it that I have found, the other being “how to think like a Roman emperor“ by Donald Robertson.