| Description |
xx, 230 pages ; 18 cm |
| ISBN |
9780691175577 hardback |
| Note |
Introduction and notes in English; texts of Seneca in English translation (pages 1-121), with Latin texts following (pages 125-215). |
| Contents |
Introduction -- How to die -- Prepare yourself -- Have no fear -- Have no regrets -- Set yourself free -- Become a part of the whole -- Epilogue: Practice what you preach (Tacitus, Annals15.61-64) -- Latin texts. |
| Summary |
"It takes an entire lifetime to learn how to die," wrote the Roman Stoic philosopher Seneca (c. 4 BC65 AD). He counseled readers to "study death always," and took his own advice, returning to the subject again and again in all his writings, yet he never treated it in a complete work. How to Die gathers in one volume, for the first time, Seneca's remarkable meditations on death and dying. Edited and translated by James S. Romm, How to Die reveals a provocative thinker and dazzling writer who speaks with a startling frankness about the need to accept death or even, under certain conditions, to seek it out. Seneca believed that life is only a journey toward death and that one must rehearse for death throughout life. Here, he tells us how to practice for death, how to die well, and how to understand the role of a good death in a good life. He stresses the universality of death, its importance as life's final rite of passage, and its ability to liberate us from pain, slavery, or political oppression. Featuring beautifully rendered new translations, How to Die also includes an enlightening introduction, notes, the original Latin texts, and an epilogue presenting Tacitus's description of Seneca's grim suicide. --Publisher. |
| Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references (pages 217-230). |
| Library Class |
Classics NS171
|
| Subject |
Death -- Early works to 1800.
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Ethics -- Early works to 1800.
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Conduct of life -- Early works to 1800.
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| Other Author |
Romm, James S., editor, translator, writer of introduction.
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