Seneca Seneca

HarperCollins is proud to present its incredible range of best-loved, essential classics. No man can live a happy life, or even a supportable life, without the study of wisdomLucius Annaeus Seneca (4 BC-AD 65) is one of the most famous Roman philosophers. Instrumental in guiding the Roman Empire under emperor Nero, Seneca influenced him from a young age with his Stoic principles. Later in life, he wrote Epistulae Morales ad Lucilium, or Letters from a Stoic, detailing these principles in full.Seneca’s letters read like a diary or a handbook of philosophical meditations. Often beginning with observations on daily life, the letters focus on many traditional themes of Stoic philosophy, such as the contempt of death, the value of friendship, and virtue as the supreme good.Using Gummere’s translation from the early twentieth century, this selection of Seneca’s letters shows his belief in the austere, ethical ideals of Stoicism – teachings we can still learn from today.

"Com uma linguagem leve, lúcida e atraente, neste texto Sêneca ensina como examinar os temas práticos da vida, sobretudo um dos mais cruciais da atualidade: o tempo. Sua atenção concentra-se na velocidade com que a vida humana passa, enfatizando o fato de que o problema não é a falta, mas sim como nosso tempo é empregado. Devemos não só reservar tempo para nós mesmos, mas sobretudo evitar toda dispersão fútil e enganosa da vida, cuidando do tempo presente e vivendo o agora. Ao mesmo tempo, o filósofo destaca a importância da prática do bem e das virtudes, bem como o papel da filosofia, que nos ensina a viver de modo correto e nos fornece os elementos para uma análise crítica do mundo."

Here is a lively, readable, and accurate verse translation of the six best plays by one of the most influential of all classical Latin writers--the only tragic playwright from ancient Rome whose work survives. Tutor to the emperor Nero, Seneca lived through uncertain, oppressive, and violent times, and his dramas depict the extremes of human behavior. Rape, suicide, child-murder, incestuous love, madness, and mutilation afflict the characters, who are obsessed and destroyed by their feelings. Seneca forces us to think about the difference between compromise and hypocrisy, about what happens when emotions overwhelm judgment, and about how a person can be good, calm, or happy in a corrupt society and under constant threat of death. In addition to her superb translation, Emily Wilson provides an invaluable introduction which offers a succinct account of Seneca's life and times, his philosophical beliefs, the literary form of the plays, and their immense influence on European literature. The book also includes an up-to-date bibliography and explanatory notes which identify mythological allusions.