PHILOSOPHER, WRITER, POLITICIAN (4 - 65AD)
Latin philosopher, playwright, politician and prominent writer,
Lucio Anneo Seneca was born in Cordoba. He was the son of the Roman
rhetorician Marco (Lucio) Anneo, better known as Seneca "El Viejo".
Lucio studied philosophy in Rome where he was deeply influenced
by the teachings of the Stoics, whose doctrine he would later develop.
In the year 49 AD he was elected as a magistrate and appointed as
a tutor of Nero, the adopted child of the Emperor Claudio. When
Claudio died, in 54 AD, Nero was elected Emperor.
Seneca was known for his honesty and moderation, which considerably
influenced the first five years of the Emperor Nero's rule. However
in the year 62 AD Seneca seemed to lose all his control over the
Emperor. Apparently, the considerable fortune that the philosopher
had accumulated aroused Nero's jealousy and the Emperor then tried
to poison him - fortunately, unsuccessfully.
Retired from public life, Seneca dedicated all his time to writing
and studying philosophy. In the year 65 AD he was involved in a
failed conspiracy to murder Nero, led by the Plebeian Cayo Calpurnio
Pison, who subsequently committed suicide.
Sadly many of Seneca's brilliant scientific works and discourses
have been lost. Among the works that have been preserved are the
"Cuestiones Naturales" (54AD), comprising a collection
of seven books which analyse nature's phenomena from a Stoic point
of view"; and "La Epistola a Lucilio" (63-64AD), 124 letters
and several Stoic treaties on subjects such as anger and mental
serenity.
