De Constantia Sapientis
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''De Constantia Sapientis'' () is a moral
essay An essay is, generally, a piece of writing that gives the author's own argument, but the definition is vague, overlapping with those of a letter, a paper, an article, a pamphlet, and a short story. Essays have been sub-classified as formal a ...
written by
Seneca the Younger Lucius Annaeus Seneca the Younger (; 65 AD), usually known mononymously as Seneca, was a Stoic philosopher of Ancient Rome, a statesman, dramatist, and, in one work, satirist, from the post-Augustan age of Latin literature. Seneca was born in ...
, a
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Stoic Stoic may refer to: * An adherent of Stoicism; one whose moral quality is associated with that school of philosophy * STOIC, a programming language * ''Stoic'' (film), a 2009 film by Uwe Boll * ''Stoic'' (mixtape), a 2012 mixtape by rapper T-Pain * ...
philosopher, sometime around 55 AD. The work celebrates the imperturbility of the ideal Stoic sage, who with an inner firmness, is strengthened by injury and adversity.


Date and addressee

The work is addressed to Seneca's friend Annaeus Serenus and written sometime between 47 and 62. ''De Constantia Sapientis'' is one of a trio of dialogues addressed to Serenus, which also includes ''
De Tranquillitate Animi ''De Tranquillitate Animi'' (''On the tranquility of the mind / on peace of mind'') is a Latin work by the Stoic philosopher Seneca (4 BC–65 AD). The dialogue concerns the state of mind of Seneca's friend Annaeus Serenus, and how to cure Sere ...
'' and ''
De Otio ''De Otio'' (''On Leisure'') is a 1st-century Latin work by Seneca (4 BC–65 AD). It survives in a fragmentary state. The work concerns the rational use of spare time, whereby one can still actively aid humankind by engaging in wider questions a ...
''. The superior position
the sage The Sage is a forthcoming indoor arena and conference centre in Gateshead, United Kingdom due to open in Autumn 2024. The site is located between the existing Sage Gateshead venue and the Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art on Gateshead Quaysid ...
inhabits, of detachment from earthly future events of a detrimental nature, is the unifying theme of the dialogues. Since Serenus is portrayed as not yet a Stoic in ''De Constantia Sapientis'', it is usually considered the earliest of the three dialogues.


Content

In ''De Constantia Sapientis'' Seneca argues that Stoicism is not as harsh as it first appears. Recalling the figure of
Cato the Younger Marcus Porcius Cato "Uticensis" ("of Utica"; ; 95 BC – April 46 BC), also known as Cato the Younger ( la, Cato Minor), was an influential conservative Roman senator during the late Republic. His conservative principles were focused on the ...
Seneca argues that Cato as a wise person suffered neither injury nor insult. Although Serenus objects to this paradox, Seneca provides further analogies to emphasize the impervious nature of the wise person. In chapter 5 Seneca distinguishes between ''contumelia'' (insults) and ''iniuria'' (injuries). The rest of the treatise through to chapter 19 consists of discussions on the nature of both themes, showing that the wise person is immune from both insults and injuries. Seneca concludes the treatise praising the idea of the wise person while offering practical advice for all of us who are imperfect.


References


Further reading


Translations

* Elaine Fantham, Harry M. Hine, James Ker, Gareth D. Williams (2014). ''Seneca: Hardship and Happiness''. University of Chicago Press. * Peter J. Anderson (2015), ''Seneca: Selected Dialogues and Consolations''. Hackett Publishing.


External links

* * * {{Authority control Philosophical works by Seneca the Younger