Even the fact that to certain persons he seems a man of a very rough and gloomy cast of mind, does not trouble me. Aristo used to say that he preferred a youth of stern disposition to one who was a jolly fellow and agreeable to the crowd. "For," he added, "wine which, when new, seemed harsh and sour, becomes good wine; but that which tasted well at the vintage cannot stand age."
So let them call him stern and a foe to his own advancement. It is just this sternness that will go well when it is aged, provided only that he continues to cherish virtue and to absorb thoroughly the studies which make for culture—not those with which it is sufficient for a man to sprinkle himself, but those in which the mind should be steeped.
Now is the time to learn.
“What? Is there any time when a man should not learn?”
By no means; but just as it is creditable for every age to study, so it is not creditable for every age to be instructed. An old man learning his A B C is a disgraceful and absurd object; the young man must store up, the old man must use.
You will therefore be doing a thing most helpful to yourself if you make this friend of yours as good a man as possible; those kindnesses, they tell us, are to be both sought for and bestowed, which benefit the giver no less than the receiver; and they are unquestionably the best kind.
—from Seneca, Moral Letters 36
As much as I know it is necessary for me to become a good man, I would still prefer to also be a beloved man. These two can most certainly coincide, though I should never think that esteem must be some sort of a reward for virtue. Where I am caught up in making an impression, the merit can only suffer.
If I don’t follow the route of fashion, which is usually the path of least resistance, they will think I am weird. If I listen first to my conscience, since the human good is ultimately moral, they will say I am stuffy and grouchy. I may enjoy my fun just as much as the next fellow, but I am failing to be as indulgent and permissive as they would like.
In other words, if I wish to be myself, and not what others expect me to be, I must be prepared to stand on my own—and that is precisely as it was meant to be.
We assume that youth, because it is characterized by a green vitality, will also have to be thoughtless and reckless, yet a strong will benefits the most from a sound mind, and the young man who struggles to be responsible for himself shows why we shouldn’t hastily think so ill of the human condition. Judge him by how he forms his sense of right and wrong, not by either his awkward posturing or his worldly prospects.
If he is a sluggard and a libertine now, he will find it far more difficult to turn himself around once the habits have settled; it is best to learn before it is too late. His quest for understanding may seem odd, and he may carry his principles clumsily, but he is well on his way to growing into what Nature intended.
Think of the ugly duckling who finally discovered he was a beautiful swan, after enduring all that rejection, ridicule, and uncertainty.
Many will go through the motions of an education, touching on a bit of everything while absorbing absolutely nothing, and they will then use their credentials to get ahead. A few will take wisdom to heart, seeking out the elements for building character, and they will then quietly make their mark with integrity and compassion.
We are always works in progress, so there is no end to learning, though it is best to master the basics before claiming to be an expert. How sad to find a lawyer who has never reflected on justice, or a businessman who has never trained for temperance, or a priest who has never practiced piety. A tree that is sick in the roots will not have the luxury of bearing good fruit.
I am especially taken by the way Seneca tells Lucilius to encourage his friend with charity, for such a willingness to gladly give of oneself for the sake of another is a very mark of the moral worth that prudence brings. Do not ask for anything more, because you already have everything you need.
As much as I know it is necessary for me to become a good man, I would still prefer to also be a beloved man. These two can most certainly coincide, though I should never think that esteem must be some sort of a reward for virtue. Where I am caught up in making an impression, the merit can only suffer.
If I don’t follow the route of fashion, which is usually the path of least resistance, they will think I am weird. If I listen first to my conscience, since the human good is ultimately moral, they will say I am stuffy and grouchy. I may enjoy my fun just as much as the next fellow, but I am failing to be as indulgent and permissive as they would like.
In other words, if I wish to be myself, and not what others expect me to be, I must be prepared to stand on my own—and that is precisely as it was meant to be.
We assume that youth, because it is characterized by a green vitality, will also have to be thoughtless and reckless, yet a strong will benefits the most from a sound mind, and the young man who struggles to be responsible for himself shows why we shouldn’t hastily think so ill of the human condition. Judge him by how he forms his sense of right and wrong, not by either his awkward posturing or his worldly prospects.
If he is a sluggard and a libertine now, he will find it far more difficult to turn himself around once the habits have settled; it is best to learn before it is too late. His quest for understanding may seem odd, and he may carry his principles clumsily, but he is well on his way to growing into what Nature intended.
Think of the ugly duckling who finally discovered he was a beautiful swan, after enduring all that rejection, ridicule, and uncertainty.
Many will go through the motions of an education, touching on a bit of everything while absorbing absolutely nothing, and they will then use their credentials to get ahead. A few will take wisdom to heart, seeking out the elements for building character, and they will then quietly make their mark with integrity and compassion.
We are always works in progress, so there is no end to learning, though it is best to master the basics before claiming to be an expert. How sad to find a lawyer who has never reflected on justice, or a businessman who has never trained for temperance, or a priest who has never practiced piety. A tree that is sick in the roots will not have the luxury of bearing good fruit.
I am especially taken by the way Seneca tells Lucilius to encourage his friend with charity, for such a willingness to gladly give of oneself for the sake of another is a very mark of the moral worth that prudence brings. Do not ask for anything more, because you already have everything you need.
—Reflection written in 12/2012
IMAGE: Milo Winter, The Ugly Duckling (1916)
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