Marcus Aurelius

by Stephens, William O.

• ISBN13: 9781441108104
• ISBN10: 1441108106
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2012-01-19
• Publisher: Bloomsbury Academic

Summary

This book is a clear and concise introduction to the Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius Antoninus. His one major surviving work, often titled 'meditations' but literally translated simply as 'to himself', is a series of short, sometimes enigmatic reflections divided seemingly arbitrarily into twelve books and apparently written only to be read by him. For these reasons Marcus is a particularly difficult thinker to understand. His musings, framed as 'notes to self' or 'memoranda', are the exhortations of an earnest, conscientious Stoic burdened with the onerous responsibilities of ruling an entire empire. William O. Stephens lucidly sketches Marcus Aurelius' upbringing, family relations, rise to the throne, military campaigns, and legacy, situating his philosophy amidst his life and times, explicating the factors shaping Marcus' philosophy, and clarifying key themes in the Memoranda. Specifically designed to meet the needs of students seeking a thorough understanding of this key figure and his major work, Marcus Aurelius: A Guide for the Perplexed is the ideal guide for understanding this Stoic author - the only philosopher who was also an emperor.

Author Biography

William O. Stephens lucidly sketches Marcus Aurelius's upbringing, family relations, rise to the throne, military campaigns, and legacy, situating his philosophy amidst his life and times, explicating the factors shaping his philosophy, and clarifying key themes in the Memoranda. Specifically designed to meet the needs of students seeking a thorough understanding of this key figure and his major work, Marcus Aurelius: A Guide for the Perplexed is the ideal guide for understanding this Stoic author - the only philosopher who was also an emperor. William O. Stephens is a Professor of Philosophy and of Classical Near Eastern Studies at Creighton University, Nebraska, USA. His other books include Stoic Ethics: Epictetus and Happiness as Freedom (Continuum, 2007) and The Person: Readings in Human Nature (Prentice Hall, 2006).

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations	p. ix
Acknowledgments	p. x
The Man, the Emperor, the Thinker	p. 1
The Man	p. 1
Judging a Book by Its Title	p. 2
The Family and Boyhood of "Truest"	p. 3
The Philosopher-Prince	p. 10
The Early Reign	p. 18
A Stoic at War	p. 29
Father and Son	p. 35
The Thinker	p. 39
The Influence of Heraclitus and Epictetus	p. 42
Heraclitus	p. 43
The divine law of logos	p. 44
Sleeping, waking, remembering	p. 48
Harmony of opposites	p. 52
River	p. 56
Flux, fire, and fortitude	p. 57
Epictetus	p. 59
Plato's Socrates as a Stoic hero	p. 59
Mighty mind and beastly body	p. 62
Death's door	p. 66
The theater of life	p. 68
Wholes and Parts	p. 71
Simple Mereology	p. 71
The Parts of a Person	p. 74
Cosmic Holism	p. 76
Death Harmlessly Transforms	p. 83
Limbs of the Social Body	p. 89
The Bees and the Hive	p. 95
What, Then, is the Good of the Individual Citizen?	p. 97
Time, Transience, and Eternity	p. 101
The Rushing River of Existence	p. 101
All that Happens Happened Before	p. 107
Time Quickly Erases	p. 109
The Gift of the Present	p. 113
You Can't Lose What You Don't Have	p. 118
Virtues, Vices, and Junk	p. 125
Determine its Nature, Substance, Cause, Purpose, and Duration	p. 125
Stupid, Paltry, Decaying, Putrid, Filthy, Vile, Contemptible, Worthless Junk	p. 126
Ashes, Bones, and Smoke	p. 130
What in Us Should We Prize?	p. 134
The Task of Philosophy	p. 136
Goodness is Your Job: Perfect Your Character	p. 141
Justice and Reverence, Injustice and Blasphemy	p. 144
The Self-cleaning Spring and the All-consuming Fire	p. 150
What is Owed to Others	p. 153
Epilogue: The Soul of a Stoic	p. 159
Appendix: Marcus, Maximus, and Stoicism in Gladiator (2000)	p. 161
Notes	p. 171
Glossary	p. 176
Further Reading	p. 184
Subject Index	p. 185
Name Index	p. 189
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