119 lines
7 KiB
Markdown
119 lines
7 KiB
Markdown
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tabtitle: "Seneca's Letter to Lucilius, Letter 5"
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title: "Seneca's Letter to Lucilius, Letter 5: On the Philosopher's Mean"
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topics: [philosophy]
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pub: "2018-02-11"
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short_desc: "In this letter, Seneca explores the concept of All Things in
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Moderation, but with a Stoic twist!"
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---
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# Letter 5: On the Philosopher's Mean
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## Original Text
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I commend you and rejoice in the fact that you are persistent in your studies,
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and that, putting all else aside, you make it each day your endeavour to become
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a better man. I do not merely exhort you to keep at it; I actually beg you to do
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so. I warn you, however, not to act after the fashion of those who desire to be
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conspicuous rather than to improve, by doing things which will rouse comment as
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regards your dress or general way of living. Repellent attire, unkempt hair,
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slovenly beard, open scorn of silver dishes, a couch on the bare earth, and any
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other perverted forms of self-display, are to be avoided. The mere name of
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philosophy, however quietly pursued, is an object of sufficient scorn; and what
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would happen if we should begin to separate ourselves from the customs of our
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fellow-men? Inwardly, we ought to be different in all respects, but our exterior
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should conform to society. Do not wear too fine, nor yet too frowzy, a toga.
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One needs no silver plate, encrusted and embossed in solid gold; but we should
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not believe the lack of silver and gold to be proof of the simple life. Let us
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try to maintain a higher standard of life than that of the multitude, but not a
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contrary standard; otherwise, we shall frighten away and repel the very persons
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whom we are trying to improve. We also bring it about that they are unwilling to
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imitate us in anything, because they are afraid lest they might be compelled to
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imitate us in everything.
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The first thing which philosophy undertakes to give is fellow-feeling with all
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men; in other words, sympathy and sociability. We part company with our promise
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if we are unlike other men. We must see to it that the means by which we wish to
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draw admiration be not absurd and odious. Our motto, as you know, is "Live
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according to Nature"; but it is quite contrary to nature to torture the body, to
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hate unlaboured elegance, to be dirty on purpose, to eat food that is not only
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plain, but disgusting and forbidding. Just as it is a sign of luxury to seek
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out dainties, so it is madness to avoid that which is customary and can be
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purchased at no great price. Philosophy calls for plain living, but not for
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penance; and we may perfectly well be plain and neat at the same time. This is
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the mean of which I approve; our life should observe a happy medium between the
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ways of a sage and the ways of the world at large; all men should admire it, but
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they should understand it also.
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"Well then, shall we act like other men? Shall there be no distinction between
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ourselves and the world?" Yes, a very great one; let men find that we are unlike
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the common herd, if they look closely. If they visit us at home, they should
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admire us, rather than our household appointments. He is a great man who uses
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earthenware dishes as if they were silver; but he is equally great who uses
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silver as if it were earthenware. It is the sign of an unstable mind not to be
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able to endure riches.
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But I wish to share with you to-day's profit also. I find in the writings of
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our Hecato that the limiting of desires helps also to cure fears: "Cease to
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hope," he says, "and you will cease to fear." "But how," you will reply, "can
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things so different go side by side?" In this way, my dear Lucilius: though they
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do seem at variance, yet they are really united. Just as the same chain fastens
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the prisoner and the soldier who guards him, so hope and fear, dissimilar as
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they are, keep step together; fear follows hope. I am not surprised that they
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proceed in this way; each alike belongs to a mind that is in suspense, a mind
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that is fretted by looking forward to the future. But the chief cause of both
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these ills is that we do not adapt ourselves to the present, but send our
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thoughts a long way ahead. And so foresight, the noblest blessing of the human
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race, becomes perverted. Beasts avoid the dangers which they see, and when they
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have escaped them are free from care; but we men torment ourselves over that
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which is to come as well as over that which is past. Many of our blessings bring
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bane to us; for memory recalls the tortures of fear, while foresight anticipates
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them. The present alone can make no man wretched. Farewell.
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## Response
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Mean as in average. Not, like... being a jerk. In this letter, Seneca encourages
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us to live a life which does not ostracize us from society. Instead, we should
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look beyond the facade, and understand the intentions behind our and others'
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actions. Living within and conforming to society is not a problem, so long as we
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do not neglect our virtue: "Inwardly, we ought to be different in all respects,
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but our exterior should conform to society."
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I take from this letter two important lessons: live your life for you, not for
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others; and don't be afraid to be normal. Though, maybe "live your life for you
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and pursue virtue" is better. Seek modesty (and moderation) in all things. Be a
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philosopher in thought, word, and deed, but be an everyday person too, and
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perhaps primarily. Nobody likes being lectured to, but people do enjoy talking
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to each other. A big aspect of Stoicism is sharing what we learn with others;
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improving ourselves to improve others. The only way to do that is by being, for
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lack of a better word, normal. As Seneca puts it, "We part company with our
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promise if we are unlike other men."
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Seneca's included quote at the end comes from Hecato, and re-enforces the
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significance of moderation. "Cease to hope, and you will cease to fear." Seneca
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expands on this to stress the importance of staying present: "...memory recalls
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the tortures of fear, while foresight anticipates them." The way Seneca
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approaches and expands the quote, though, is simply poetic, and something I will
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certainly remember moving forward: "Just as the same chain fastens the prisoner
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and the soldier who guards him, so hope and fear, dissimilar as they are, keep
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step together; fear follows hope."
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A few more things worth noting:
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"Repellent attire, unkempt hair, slovenly beard, open scorn of silver dishes, a
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couch on the bare earth, and any other perverted forms of self-display, are to
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be avoided." This seems like a direct response (and another patented Seneca Sick
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Burn) to the Cynics.
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"It is the sign of an unstable mind not to be able to endure riches." I read
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this a few different ways. First, endure the riches of others, and do not let
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them effect your sense of self-worth. Second, endure the riches of yourself, and
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do not let it inflate your self-worth. Finally, endure all riches, and recognize
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them as an indifference, preferred but never at the expense of virtue.
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# Source
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* [Moral Letters to Lucilius, Letter 5 on Wikisource](
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https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Moral_letters_to_Lucilius/Letter_5)
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###### [Letter Index]({{ site.baseurl }}{% post_url 2018-01-15-Letters-To-Lucilius %})
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