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qamelion's review against another edition
5.0
Life two thousand years ago was far different from modern times. Electricity was only possible in the mind of a madman, twenty people shared one public restroom and warfare was still centered around people’s physical abilities.
One thing that hasn’t changed a bit though are human emotions and feelings relating to life in a society. With this exceptional piece of work Seneca proves to be still far ahead of the majority of people today in terms of self-consciousness and the idea of a minimalistic lifestyle.
To dive a little bit deeper into the latter point: minimalism - an idea that is contemporarily gaining a lot of popularity - is not the invention of a modern day and age’s genius. And why would it be? Materialism has existed ever since men grew to be affected by wealth - materialistic wealth that comes in the form of gold, an unnecessary amount of space and power. These factors have been major distractions to the human mind. A fact that Seneca managed to understand and which put him in a superior position towards his peers.
This subject is only one of many interesting topics the Roman philosopher is touching upon. The point that stuck with me most after reading this book is to always have yourself in mind and that time really is the most precious thing life has to offer. He showed me that even if I don’t like the status quo of society and I do not agree with the majority’s viewpoints I should not worry and everything is fine as long as I use time that I have to myself in a useful way.
Productivity and the aim of thriving in the things you love are some of the most important aspects to keep in mind. Self-indulgence and a waste of time (e.g. in the form of basic entertainment) on the other hand are there to be eliminated and only distractions on the mission of freeing oneself.
‘On the Shortness of Life’ is a piece of work I definitely have to revisit to enjoy all of its fruits hanging on a beautiful tree of wisdom.
- "As far as I am concerned, I know that I have lost not wealth but distractions."
One thing that hasn’t changed a bit though are human emotions and feelings relating to life in a society. With this exceptional piece of work Seneca proves to be still far ahead of the majority of people today in terms of self-consciousness and the idea of a minimalistic lifestyle.
To dive a little bit deeper into the latter point: minimalism - an idea that is contemporarily gaining a lot of popularity - is not the invention of a modern day and age’s genius. And why would it be? Materialism has existed ever since men grew to be affected by wealth - materialistic wealth that comes in the form of gold, an unnecessary amount of space and power. These factors have been major distractions to the human mind. A fact that Seneca managed to understand and which put him in a superior position towards his peers.
This subject is only one of many interesting topics the Roman philosopher is touching upon. The point that stuck with me most after reading this book is to always have yourself in mind and that time really is the most precious thing life has to offer. He showed me that even if I don’t like the status quo of society and I do not agree with the majority’s viewpoints I should not worry and everything is fine as long as I use time that I have to myself in a useful way.
Productivity and the aim of thriving in the things you love are some of the most important aspects to keep in mind. Self-indulgence and a waste of time (e.g. in the form of basic entertainment) on the other hand are there to be eliminated and only distractions on the mission of freeing oneself.
‘On the Shortness of Life’ is a piece of work I definitely have to revisit to enjoy all of its fruits hanging on a beautiful tree of wisdom.
- "As far as I am concerned, I know that I have lost not wealth but distractions."
fufureads's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
tense
medium-paced
4.75
eli_cart's review against another edition
Just a man spinning his male boringness thinking he knows it all.
chou520's review against another edition
4.0
i want to watch seneca and sigmeund freud have a debate
so this wasn’t exactly bad, but i also wouldn’t recommend it. it’s definitely a must-read for those interested in philosophy just so you can like say you read it and that you have an informed opinion on seneca. otherwise, just read marcus aurelius. seriously like on the 0 to marcus aurelius scale this lands a solid 3.
seneca is snarky and funny, and he’s definitely handing out lots of tough love here. i especially liked the bit about how those in the modern age (and i use modern age lightly, considering when this book was written) are lucky, because we (and i once again use the proverbial we lightly, considering seneca definitely did not expect the internet or tiktok or whatever) have access to all the writings of those before us. feeling depressed? read some epictetus. confused about your life? plato is right there at your local library. i loved the bit about how our experiences have been experienced and puzzled about and found solutions for by so many of our admittedly more intelligent predecessors. because yeah he’s right. there’s a comfort in the transcendental anonymity of philosophy.
but my point is, if you really want to know about the shortness of living and how to live your life accordingly, just read marcus aurelius. seneca’s got the spirit and the jokes, but that’s all i can give him
so this wasn’t exactly bad, but i also wouldn’t recommend it. it’s definitely a must-read for those interested in philosophy just so you can like say you read it and that you have an informed opinion on seneca. otherwise, just read marcus aurelius. seriously like on the 0 to marcus aurelius scale this lands a solid 3.
seneca is snarky and funny, and he’s definitely handing out lots of tough love here. i especially liked the bit about how those in the modern age (and i use modern age lightly, considering when this book was written) are lucky, because we (and i once again use the proverbial we lightly, considering seneca definitely did not expect the internet or tiktok or whatever) have access to all the writings of those before us. feeling depressed? read some epictetus. confused about your life? plato is right there at your local library. i loved the bit about how our experiences have been experienced and puzzled about and found solutions for by so many of our admittedly more intelligent predecessors. because yeah he’s right. there’s a comfort in the transcendental anonymity of philosophy.
but my point is, if you really want to know about the shortness of living and how to live your life accordingly, just read marcus aurelius. seneca’s got the spirit and the jokes, but that’s all i can give him
toffishay's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Misogyny
Minor: War and Slavery