Dialogues and Essays

What Hacker News says

1. kashyapcJun 2021
   Unless you absolutely cannot afford to, I firmly suggest to invest in a solid English translation. A bad translation is a deal breaker. For Seneca's works, I recommend these:

   → 'Letters on Ethics' (University of Chicago Press) – I consider this to be the definitive English translation; it's done by two of the foremost scholars: Margaret Graver and A. A. Long. This has the full set of 124 letters. It reads extremely well, has a solid introduction with excellent notes throughout, and it's also wonderfully typeset. It can't get better than this. (This costs about 40 euros; if it's a tad pricey for you, see the alternative below. )

   → 'Seneca: Selected Letters' (Oxford World's Classics) — This is a curated list of letters by a reputed scholar, Elaine Fantham. A compelling aspect about this edition is that at the beginning of each letter there's a short summary of it.

   → 'Seneca: Dialogues and Essays' (Oxford World's Classics) — This contains some of Seneca's famous essays on bereavement consolations, on tranquility of the mind, and more. Translation by John Davie; it reads very well. (I also consult an alternative excellent translation, 'Hardship & Happiness'; this was also, like the full set of letters above, commissioned by Chicago University Press; and translated by several scholars.)

   And FWIW, I've written[1] last year about suggested English translations for broader Stoicism-related works. Translations matter.

   [1] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=22990579

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2. kashyapcDec 2020
   Yes! On the Tranquility of Mind is a marvellous essay. Also it is the only essay of Seneca's that has an interlocutor, a certain Serenus, who begins the essay with an excellent description of conflicting mental states he's experiencing. As a teaser for those lurking, here's a fragment of what he writes to Seneca:

   "[...] I am aware that these mental disturbances I suffer from are not dangerous and bring no threat of a storm; to express to you in a true analogy the source of my complaint, it is not a storm I labour under but seasickness: relieve me, then, of this malady, whatever it be, and hurry to aid one who struggles with land in his sight. [...]"

   ---

   Seneca's response to it is equally astounding. (The above quote is from "Dialogues and Essays", Oxford World's Classics; translation by John Davie.)

   One of my personal highlights this year: I've spent six contiguous months reading all of 124 letters of Seneca (the University of Chicago Press edition is the way to go) and several of his dialogues and essays. It's amazing how many of his letters try to shape our reading habits.

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3. tbjohnstonApr 2015
   Just finished:

   The Snow Leopard by Peter Matthiessen (as did pdevr) - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Snow_Leopard

   A Guide to the Good Life: the ancient art of Stoic joy by William Irvine - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5617966-a-guide-to-the-g...

   Now Reading:

   Seneca's Dialogues & Essays - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1933080.Dialogues_and_Es...

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