The Greatest Empire: A Life of Seneca by Emily Wilson
Seneca is best known today for his writing. This book explores his life and the Rome that he lived in. He came from a fabulously wealthy family. He had the ear of the Roman leadership. He had an enviable position - until he was (possibly falsely) accused of being involved in an insurrection, leading to his death by suicide. His writings expressed a distaste for Roman customs such as gladiator fights. While, he acknowledged them as part of culture and punishment for crimes, he felt they had a negative impact on the spectators. His early stoic philosophy led him to question the trappings of materiality. His writings helped to influence early modern writers such as Shakespeare. (I'm so used to thinking of Shakespeare as being old, that I had to pull a rest to remind myself that Seneca was over a millenia earlier.) Christians have tried to adopt him, in part through an apocryphal conversation with Paul. Seneca's thoughts have continued to be influential today - even if they are now influencing the influencers.
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