On the Shortness of Life (Penguin Great Ideas) [Mass Market Paperback]

Seneca (Author), C. D. N. Costa (Translator)

Book Description

Series: Penguin Great Ideas | Publication Date: September 6, 2005

Throughout history, some books have changed the world. They have transformed the way we see ourselves and each other. They have inspired debate, dissent, war and revolution. They have enlightened, outraged, provoked and comforted. They have enriched lives and destroyed them. Now Penguin brings you the works of the great thinkers, pioneers, radicals and visionaries whose ideas shook civilization, and helped make us who we are. The Stoic writings of the philosopher Seneca offer powerful insights into the art of living, the importance of reason and morality, and continue to provide profound guidance to many through their eloquence, lucidity and timeless wisdom.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Lucius Annaeus Seneca, statesman, philosopher, advocate and man of letters, was born in Spain around 4BC. He rose to prominence at Rome, pursuing a double career in the courts and political life, until Claudius sent him into exile exile on the island of Corsica for eight years. Recalled in AD49, he was appointed tutor to the boy who was to become, in AD54, the emperor Nero. Seneca acted for eight years as Nero's unofficial chief minister until Nero too turned against him and he retired from public life to devote himself to philosophy and writing. In AD65, following the discovery of a plot against the emperor, he and many others were compelled by Nero to commit suicide. C.D.N. Costa has spent most of his working life at Birmingham University, where he is Professor of Classics and Chairman of the School of Antiquity. Among other works, he has written commentaries on the works of Seneca, Letters, Dialogues and the tragedy Medea. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Mass Market Paperback: 105 pages
• Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics) (September 6, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0143036327
• ISBN-13: 978-0143036326
• Product Dimensions: 7.1 x 4.4 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #42,772 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Lucius Annaeus Seneca, statesman, philosopher, advocate and man of letters, was born in Spain around 4BC. He rose to prominence at Rome, pursuing a double career in the courts and political life, until Claudius sent him into exile exile on the island of Corsica for eight years. Recalled in AD49, he was appointed tutor to the boy who was to become, in AD54, the emperor Nero. Seneca acted for eight years as Nero's unofficial chief minister until Nero too turned against him and he retired from public life to devote himself to philosophy and writing. In AD65, following the discovery of a plot against the emperor, he and many others were compelled by Nero to commit suicide.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

48 of 49 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Never have I trusted Fortune...", November 20, 2005

By 

E. A. Lovitt "starmoth" (Gladwin, MI USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: On the Shortness of Life (Penguin Great Ideas) (Mass Market Paperback)

Seneca's brand of Stoicism emphasized the philosophy by which his reader might face life's setbacks. In particular he considered it important to confront the fact of one's own mortality. The discussion of how to approach death dominates this book, which is a series of letters to relatives and friends. Seneca himself was ordered to commit suicide by the Emperor Nero, and did so in A.D. 65.

This book also elucidates the author's pet peeves, many of which sound quite modern:

* Men who comb their few strands of hair forward in an effort to hide their baldness
* Historians who memorize obscure dates and battles in an effort to appear knowledgeable
* Collectors and hobbyists of any sort
* Sports fans (men who sit at "a wrestling ring...keenly following the bouts between boys")
* Men who pretend they're younger than they are
* Lunatic poets who prose on about love
* The current mode of dance (mincing and wriggling)

There is very little talk about love or mitigating the pain of death through love. In fact, Seneca recommends that we detach ourselves from strenuous goal-seeking, repeated indulgence in sport and play, or overindulgence in anything.

Everything in moderation.

Yet his wife did commit suicide with Seneca. Was that out of love or fear?

This small book (106 pages) gives its reader a window into the life and customs of the Roman Empire as seen through the clear gaze of one of its eminent philosophers.

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Life is what happens to you when you're busy making other plans.", March 21, 2006

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G. Merritt (Boulder, CO) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: On the Shortness of Life (Penguin Great Ideas) (Mass Market Paperback)

So it is, Seneca observes, it's not that we are not given a short life, but that we waste a lot it. Life is long if you know how to use it. How stupid to forget our mortality. "Live immediately." Also known for his tragedy Oedipus, Seneca (Lucius Annaeus) (AD 4-65) was a Stoic philosopher. His reputation as a philosopher is derived primarily from his twelve books of MORAL ESSAYS and philosophical letters. The Stoics emphasized the importance of self-sufficiency and equanimity in the face of adversity, and believed that virtue is attainable only by living in harmony with nature. Although he may not rank with Plato or Aristotle as a philosopher, or with Marcus Aurelius (121-180) (MEDITATIONS) or Epictetus as a Stoic sage, Seneca nevertheless offers us timeless wisdom for living a meaningful life. (It should be noted that this review refers to the 2005 Penguin Great Ideas edition of ON THE SHORTNESS OF LIFE, translated by C. D. N. Costa, which includes the three essays, "On the Shortness of Life," "Consolation to Helvia," and "On Tranquility of Mind.")

G. Merritt

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Remedy for a Mid-Life Crisis, June 26, 2006

By 

Jamie Anderson (Glendale, CA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: On the Shortness of Life (Penguin Great Ideas) (Mass Market Paperback)

For my mother's fifty-fifth birthday, I gave her a copy of this book. Even I, at sixteen, was completely changed by Seneca's powerful and timeless ideals in this book- these are essays for all ages, all eras, all people. Although Seneca wrote in the beginning of the "common era," his description of a world where people search fruitlessly for happiness through materialism and waiting for the future rings truer than ever in our postmodern age. His ideas for remedying our distress, through accepting each minute of life as it comes and concentrating completely on our present task, are no less than transforming.