Seneca - College of Stoic Philosophers

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200 CAIUS MAECENASasked him in what manner it was profitable toenjoy and preserve great gifts of fortune. Virgil'replied Then :only when a man is ambitious tosurpass others as greatly in justice and liberalityas he does in wealth and honours.'Maecenas was a copious author, but he probablydid not attach much importance to his owncompositions. It is remarkable that among allthe compliments showered upon him by his parasiticamensa— by Horace, Virgil, and—Propertiusnot one relates to his literary productions, andit is a fair inference that his vanity was not muchinterested in their success. He was as indifferentto the literary as he was to the political traditionsof Rome. The nova elocutio which he introducedinto his poetry, the transpositions of words fromtheir natural places for the sake of effect, thepreciosities of his style, were derided by hislater critics likecontemporaries, and cited bySeneca and Quintilian as the classical examplesof this kind of vicious composition.^ The fewspecimens of his poetry that have descended tous abundantly bear out the charge, though itmust be remembered that, for the most part,they are expressly cited with that object. Thesevere taste of Augustus, who equally disliked theaffected imitation of old writers bythe use ofobsolete words, and the over-ornate and eccentricmanner of the new school, did not spare theof the minister'seuphemisms and quaintnessesstyle. Macrobius has preserved for us the endof a letter from the emperor to Maecenas in*Sen., Ep. 19, 114 ; Quint, ix. 4.
CAIUS MAECENAS 201which he parodies his friend's style with happyeffect :'Vale mel gentium,' so it runs, ' melcule,ebur ex Hetruria, laver Aretinum, adamas supernus,Tiberinum margaritum, Cilniorum smaragde,jaspis figulorum, berylle Porsennae, carbunculumItaliae.' ^ Maecenas's love of precious stones, ofwhich we have evidence in some surviving hendecasyllablesaddressed by him to Horace, is alsorallied in this letter. Seneca, to whom we owemuch of our scanty knowledge of Maecenas, tellsus that his writings were often greatin theirmeaning, but enervated by their expression.^The change effected in the Roman characterat the close of the first century before Christ, withits subsequent developments, offers an interestingstudy to the philosophic historian. The housewas completed, the architects who had superintendedits completion had fought for its possession,into which the strongest of them had finallyentered. The employment which had absorbedthe lives of the workmen was at an end, and nowtheir unemployed descendants began to look aboutthem and to wonder what they were to do next.In fact, the cultivated Romans, havingfirst time leisure to remember that they werealive,life.was stillfor thebegan the dangerous search for theories ofPhilosophy, which, as we learn from Cicero,in his time by many considered a studybelow the dignity of a Roman gentleman,nowbegan powerfully to attract the attention of theeducated classes, and the writings of the Greekphilosophers were eagerly»Mac, Sat. ii.4discussed. Stoicism,»Ep. 92-
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SENECA
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SENECA.From the double bust of Sene
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,^e.PRticava;lairis^^T\r\(pQ *
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viINTRODUCTORY NOTEin a critical pe
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FRONTISPIECESeneca.— From the dou
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2 SENECAnon-existent rule of law be
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4 SENECAinvention of the effective
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6 SENECAsomething of the eloquence
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8 SENECASeneca and Helvia, was adop
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10 SENECAThe Senecas appear to have
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12 SENECAOriginal minds may not for
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14 SENECAone another yet in each ca
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i6SENECAThe young enthusiast besieg
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i8SENECAbath all the year round, fo
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20 SENECAin his use of words, but u
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22 SENECAmagistracies to senatorial
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CHAPTER IIITHE PRINCIPATE OF CALIGU
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26 SENECAin short sentences that fi
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28 SENECAcomplexion bore witness to
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30 SENECAcarefullyto observe whethe
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CHAPTER IVEXILE IN CORSICA, A.D. 4I
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34 SENECAhad been accustomed to res
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36 SENECAA capital sentence was fir
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38 SENECAornaments to be laid at he
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40 SENECAthat it was capable of giv
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42 SENECACassius, it is true, or hi
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44 SENECAcoincidence may, of course
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CHAPTER VRETURN FROM EXILE— LAST
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48 SENECAThe crisis over, the next
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50 SENECAa decree of the Senate, th
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52, SENECANero was twelve years old
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54 SENECAand were believed to be de
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56 SENECABritannicus with his siste
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58 SENECAwere the subjects of conte
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6oSENECAlaid aside/ Nero made his e
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62 SENECAyoke. He began by heaping
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64 SENECABut he had to choose betwe
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66 SENECAhe put into the prince's m
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68 SENECAothers, have moved me to p
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70 SENECAHer subsequent submission
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72 SENECACampus Martius— all prep
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74 SENECApromisedall she asked. Sil
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76 SENECAinstitutions had been mode
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78 SENECAmost powerful statesman wa
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8oof heaven lestSENECAthe balance o
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82 SENECAconcealed art into the tex
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84 SENECAinformer under Claudius, a
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CHAPTER VIIIthe tragedy of baiae. i
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88 SENECAto be taken into account.
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90 SENECAwhere Acerronia either att
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92 SENECAhe proceeded to an indictm
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94 SENECAhimself was of no service
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96 SENECAtheir emperor personally c
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CHAPTER IXDECLINE OF SENECA's INFLU
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100 SENECAIn Rome the event of the
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102 SENECAof affection and gratitud
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104 SENECAinfluence for good. It is
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10 6 SENFXAshould be content to gai
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io8the exulting tyrant.Senate made
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noSENECAdelighted at the news and o
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112 SENECAindications of the divine
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114 SENECAby a wall, with towers er
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ii6SENECAplant an old plantation. T
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Ii8SENECAis adopted but by a few we
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120 SENECAFriendship [he writes to
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122 SENECAachieved by constantly ke
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' *124 SENECAhe must disdain all th
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126 SENECAwith others of his friend
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128 SENECAextraordinary distinctnes
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130 SENECAtreats his subject in a s
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132 SENECAproceed to the solution o
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134 SENECAtude whatever fate might
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CHAPTER XILETTER TO LUCILIUS ON AET
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138 SENECAfor they are public prope
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140 SENECAwere less audible than th
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142 SENECAThe following extracts wi
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144 SENECAgave me to all men ;but s
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146 SENECAthe duty he owed to human
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148 SENECAthough they have not aske
Page 166 and 167: CHAPTER XIITHE CONSPIRACY OF PISO A
Page 168 and 169: 152 SENECAseemed to regard, in Taci
Page 170 and 171: 154 SENECAdisregarded, made a last
Page 172 and 173: 156 SENECAthis important recruit, a
Page 174 and 175: 158 SENECAScevinus, being separatel
Page 176 and 177: i6oSENECAbeforehand, and even if th
Page 178 and 179: i62SENECAhad conspired to avenge. B
Page 180 and 181: CHAPTER XIIITHE PHILOSOPHY OF SENEC
Page 182 and 183: ,poweri66SENECAmay— have power ov
Page 184 and 185: i68SENECAable to our eyes or ears.
Page 186 and 187: 170 SENECAwill you feel no venerati
Page 188 and 189: 172 SENECAat the back of them, beca
Page 190 and 191: 174 SENECAhad the contempt of a man
Page 192 and 193: 176 SENECA'says, a pipe for Fortune
Page 194 and 195: 178 SENECAcan, as a general, if not
Page 196 and 197: i8oSENECAon conventional lines, was
Page 198 and 199: i82SENECAthe tragedian were actuall
Page 200 and 201: i84SENECAMedes, Indians, and tribes
Page 202 and 203: i86SENECAprobability by way of Flor
Page 205 and 206: CAIUS MAECENASThe battle of Actium
Page 207 and 208: CAIUS MAECENAS191restoration of the
Page 209 and 210: CAIUS MAECENAS 193pessimism. He exp
Page 211 and 212: CAIUS MAECENAS195Heindolence and so
Page 213 and 214: CAIUS MAECENAS197his fame, and here
Page 215: CAIUS MAECENAS199He was not offende
Page 219 and 220: CAIUS MAECENAS 203smaller or larger
Page 221 and 222: and endeavoured toCAIUS MAECENAS 20
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