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A review by vlpfeiffer
Meditations by Marcus Aurelius
challenging
inspiring
reflective
3.0
This is the first book I've ever picked up in the genre of philosophy. A lot of the ideas intrigued me and are not unfamiliar to me outside of the framework of Stoicism. Stoicism has a marked flavor of masculine toxicity and self-flagellation for being human, but also a grounded sense of mental self-control, logic through action, and letting go of the things outside our control.
I found that I enjoyed the introduction by Gregory Hays more than the actual Meditations themselves. It was written in a more informative and educational way which helped me understand the context needed beforehand. Marcus' Meditations are written more like a journal of reminders - it seems Marcus is trying to convince himself of the same consistent ideas and of his own 'nature' when his physical actions and mental perceptions don't reflect how he feels he SHOULD behave and believe. So the disjointed and freeform conversation with himself is not a great introduction to the topic despite having some great insights sprinkled throughout. It's just a lot of repeating the same ideas over and over again.
Although it is comforting to know that a Roman King from thousands of years ago struggled with some of the same things I do, there are also moments of severe cultural differences that need to be accounted for. Marcus' privilege shines through his philosophy in his perspectives on what he categorizes as 'lesser beings' and needs to be looked at with some amount of understanding of the time and culture in regards to slavery and women in particular.
If anything this book makes me more curious about the other Houses of Philosophy, particularly Epicurean and Existentialist ideas. I wouldn't recommend this book as a good introduction to philosophy but it also didn't scare me off from it altogether either.
I found that I enjoyed the introduction by Gregory Hays more than the actual Meditations themselves. It was written in a more informative and educational way which helped me understand the context needed beforehand. Marcus' Meditations are written more like a journal of reminders - it seems Marcus is trying to convince himself of the same consistent ideas and of his own 'nature' when his physical actions and mental perceptions don't reflect how he feels he SHOULD behave and believe. So the disjointed and freeform conversation with himself is not a great introduction to the topic despite having some great insights sprinkled throughout. It's just a lot of repeating the same ideas over and over again.
Although it is comforting to know that a Roman King from thousands of years ago struggled with some of the same things I do, there are also moments of severe cultural differences that need to be accounted for. Marcus' privilege shines through his philosophy in his perspectives on what he categorizes as 'lesser beings' and needs to be looked at with some amount of understanding of the time and culture in regards to slavery and women in particular.
If anything this book makes me more curious about the other Houses of Philosophy, particularly Epicurean and Existentialist ideas. I wouldn't recommend this book as a good introduction to philosophy but it also didn't scare me off from it altogether either.