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A review by kafkay
Meditations by Marcus Aurelius
4.0
This was good. And I’m glad it was. Seneca had pretty much put me off Greek philosophy completely, and this was a welcome surprise.
So this is basically Marcus Aurelius’ diary that he never intended for other people to read. It’s a collection of entries he made randomly, instructing and reminding himself how to live and act. Most of his instructions are of the stoic school of philosophy, to no one’s surprise. And they aren’t something you would be unaware of either. It’s all about what we know is good- keep your feelings and thoughts in control, accept what has happened and do what you can. So don’t expect any revelations from this book.
The reason it’s good is seeing the things written down, knowing they were written by an emperor almost two thousand years ago, and still relating to it. How he is reminding himself, you are reminded too, with new words every time. You see how he constantly has to keep himself in check, just like a normal person. It isn’t like the other stoic philosophy books I tried. They seemed more preachy. This seems human. The things are said again and again, and you see Marcus dealing with normal problems- annoying people, escapism, laziness, being good to others, wanting validation. I think it feels more intimate, and hence helps you more.
He brings up god and nature a lot as divine and perfect presence. I wouldn’t agree with that, of course, but I think trying to think and relate what he says to your own life and modern times can lead to some really interesting thoughts.
And as I said, there are a lot of repetitions. He talks about the same things over and over again. That does reinforce the ideas, but also makes it a bit annoying to get through. Added to that is the fact that each chapter is a collection of entries which are at most a few paragraphs, but mostly a few lines. That makes it harder to maintain a chain of thought, when each paragraph can be talking about something new.
But in the end, it all means the same. It makes you understand Marcus' thinking, and I think that's great. It really can help you, if only by reminding you. Don’t expect any big epiphany, or for everything to make sense. But read with an open mind.
So this is basically Marcus Aurelius’ diary that he never intended for other people to read. It’s a collection of entries he made randomly, instructing and reminding himself how to live and act. Most of his instructions are of the stoic school of philosophy, to no one’s surprise. And they aren’t something you would be unaware of either. It’s all about what we know is good- keep your feelings and thoughts in control, accept what has happened and do what you can. So don’t expect any revelations from this book.
The reason it’s good is seeing the things written down, knowing they were written by an emperor almost two thousand years ago, and still relating to it. How he is reminding himself, you are reminded too, with new words every time. You see how he constantly has to keep himself in check, just like a normal person. It isn’t like the other stoic philosophy books I tried. They seemed more preachy. This seems human. The things are said again and again, and you see Marcus dealing with normal problems- annoying people, escapism, laziness, being good to others, wanting validation. I think it feels more intimate, and hence helps you more.
He brings up god and nature a lot as divine and perfect presence. I wouldn’t agree with that, of course, but I think trying to think and relate what he says to your own life and modern times can lead to some really interesting thoughts.
And as I said, there are a lot of repetitions. He talks about the same things over and over again. That does reinforce the ideas, but also makes it a bit annoying to get through. Added to that is the fact that each chapter is a collection of entries which are at most a few paragraphs, but mostly a few lines. That makes it harder to maintain a chain of thought, when each paragraph can be talking about something new.
But in the end, it all means the same. It makes you understand Marcus' thinking, and I think that's great. It really can help you, if only by reminding you. Don’t expect any big epiphany, or for everything to make sense. But read with an open mind.