Between Heathenism and Christianity - College of Stoic Philosophers

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Plutarch and the Greece of His Age which every man is originally endowed. They grope in the darkness cast about them by their own pas sions, and refuse to follow the lamp that reason holds up before them. Plutarch s optimism; his faith in the power of the intellect to make the world better, is especially remarkable in view oi the fact that his countrymen, notwithstanding their general intel ligence, notwithstanding the large number of great men in almost every department of knowledge born in Greek lands, in spite of the fact that Greece was the native hearth of philosophy, had for centuries been retrograding morally, intellectually and politi cally. So hard is it to divorce most men from a theory to which they have attached themselves. His mistake arose from his seeing all men in the mirror of his own thoughts. He believed that the whole human race could be influenced by the motives that influenced himself, and that all could, if they wished, be constantly engaged in the search for light and wisdom in the way he sought them. This radical error he inherited from his master, Plato, and it is strange that he did not detect it. He seems never to have suspected that he might be mistaken. Plutarch s religion is wholly without enthusiasm and his morality has in it not a tinge of emotion. Do right always, because by such a course of life you will enjoy the largest measure of mundane hap piness that can fall to the lot of a mortal, and be a benefactor to all who come within the circle of your influence. Make the best of every situation in which 184
Plutarch and the Greece of His Age you may be placed. Do not take too seriously the hindrances to a virtuous life that you may find in your way, because you can remove them if you will. No matter what your station in life, do not expect your path to be always a smooth one. If you keep these things in mind you will probably live long, you are sure to live happily. Plutarch s views regarding the education of women are far in advance of his age. He follows his master, Plato, in vindicating for them the same virtues that belong to men. His treatise often desig nated The Virtues of Women is chiefly a record of heroic deeds that have been performed by the socalled weaker sex. He admits that the worth or efficiency of women is not necessarily of the same quality as that of men, but he contends that its ethical value is equal and its intrinsic merit in no wise inferior. The woman who has performed a noble deed is entitled to just as much credit as a a man. He takes issue with Thucydides for say ing that the best woman is said either for good or evil. the one of whom least is He also takes issue with the thoroughly Greek sentiment, though perhaps more pronounced in Athens than elsewhere, that woman is at most little else than a plaything and a convenience for man; and that her highest function is to bear legitimate male children. According to Plutarch the wife is to be the equal partner in the management of the household. When it is well con ducted she deserves equal commendation with the 136
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Between Heathenism and Christianity
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" PREFACE. It is admitted by s
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Preface In the following pages I ha
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CONTENTS, ....... PAGE. PBEFAOE ...
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SENECA: HIS CHARACTER AND ENVIRONME
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" " Seneca: His Character
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Seneca: His Character and Environme
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" No Seneca: His Character and
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SELECTIONS FROM THE WRITINGS OF SEN
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Selections from the Writings of Sen
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De Providentia untouched, I shall u
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" Why De Providentia gence and
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Page 93 and 94: De Providentia well-known exemplar
Page 95 and 96: De Providentia prove by these thing
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Page 99 and 100: <J5 De Providentia ingly the
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Page 171 and 172: The Delay of the Deity vices, He ad
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Page 175 and 176: The Delay of the Deity may turn to
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Page 179 and 180: The Delay of the Deity Sikyonians a
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Page 183 and 184: The Delay of the Deity are allowed
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The Delay of the Deity wished might
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" " The Delay of the Deit
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The Delay of the Deity to what is p
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The Delay of the Deity son from his
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" You " Do " "
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The Delay of the Deity conjured up
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Pindar says? 197 The Delay of the D
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The Delay of the Deity to be a vill
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" " The Delay of the Deit
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The Delay of the Deity distances fr
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The Delay of the Deity the souls of
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The Delay of the Deity cation and p
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The Delay of the Deity the white. H
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The Delay of the Deity offer suppli
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The Delay of the Deityfalling into
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" " " The Delay of t
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The Delay of the Deity is intrinsic
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Appendix VOLUME III. De E apud Delp
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Appendix cited by their Latin title
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