Letters from a Stoic

Lucius Annaeus Seneca (c. 4 BCE-65 CE), also known as Seneca the Younger, was a distinguished Stoic philosopher, statesman, and playwright. Born into an aristocratic family in Cordoba (modern-day Córdoba, Spain), Seneca received an education in rhetoric and philosophy, rising to prominence as a thinker and advisor. His political career was marked by turbulence, including periods of exile, persecution, and ultimately his forced suicide. However, his literary contributions have endured. Seneca is now recognized as one of the three most important Roman Stoics, alongside Epictetus and Marcus Aurelius.

Letters from a Stoic was written during the final stage of Seneca’s life. After an eight-year exile to Corsica, Seneca assumed the role of tutor to the future Emperor Nero in 49 CE. During the initial years of Nero’s reign, Seneca effectively served as co-ruler of Rome alongside an army officer named Burrus due to Nero’s disinterest in state affairs. However, by 62 CE, rival advisors gained Nero’s favor, prompting Seneca to withdraw from public life. From this point until his suicide in 65 CE, Seneca composed Letters from a Stoic.

Seneca’s writes with a focus on inner peace and the search for ethical perfection through

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