Letters from a Stoic

Selected from the Epistulae Morales ad Lucilium, Seneca's Letters of a Stoic is a collection of essays disguised as the insights of one of the most enlightening philosophers of the Silver Age of Roman literature. This edition of Penguin Classics is translated from Latin and includes an introduction by Robin Campbell. A philosophy that viewed self-control as the key to a life in harmony with nature, Stoicism demanded the restraint of animal instincts and the severing of emotional attachments. These beliefs were formulated by the Athenian followers of Zeno in the fourth century BC, but it was with Seneca that the Stoics found their most eloquent advocate. The Stoicism expressed in the letters helped facilitate the transition of pagan Rome to Christianity, as it upholds upright ethical ideals and praises virtuous living while expressing disdain for the cruel treatment of slaves and inhumane slaughter.