Seneca,

Today the phrase which stuck out at me the most was this:

“…they pray for bad things with good intentions.”

Our loved ones do want what’s best for us, but often they misidentify what will yield happiness.  The philosopher is in a particularly tenuous position, as the what she has identified as ‘the good’ is about as far from what the wider society believes to be good.

Musonius talks about honoring our parents, except in the case where our parents might instruct us (even unknowingly) in something non-virtuous.

The society at large, too, has certain expectations.  Some of these are more easily discarded than others.  The task, then, is identifying which of these might influence our own virtue, and handling them appropriately.

There is much food for thought, here.  Thank you for the letter.

Farewell.

Part of Michel Daw’s Reading Plan of Seneca’s Letters.