LIV Flashcards
How does Seneca characterise his health in general? [4]
He had been healthy for a long time until a sudden recrudescence
He has experienced every illness, but asthma is the worst
He is doomed to suffering from asthma
He has now been restored to health
Why is it absurd to be happy about recovering from an illness? [3]
Illness is only postponed
Like a defendant equating the postponement of his rial with acquittal
Like Seneca, you can be as happy during illness and pain as during good health, as long as you don’t suffer mental/spiritual pain
What metaphors does Seneca use to describe life (and death)? [2]
Like a lamp that’s no worse off extinguished than lighted
As night turns to day, then back to night again
How does Seneca characterise his asthma? [5]
It comes and goes quickly like a storm at sea
It’s a continued “last gasp”
Physicians call it “Practising how to die”
At first he can’t breathe or talk, then it gets easier and easier to breathe, and his breathing slows down, until he can breathe again
Even when he’s not having an attack he usually breathes with some difficulty
How does Seneca explain the phrase “death is non-existence”? [2]
Death is the same as not being born in the first place because either way one doesn’t exist
There is deep peace either side of life, with suffering in between (i.e. life itself)
Why doesn’t Seneca want Lucilius to praise him for his readiness to die? [2]
His bad health, not his own fortitude, makes life undesirable
It wouldn’t be a big deal for Seneca to die, because his life is unpleasant
Whom should Lucilius praise if not Seneca himself, and why? [1,1]
Someone who enjoys life but is nonetheless ready to die
He is being forced to leave behind something he enjoys
How does the wise man escape necessity? How does this influence his view on death? [1,1]
He wants to do whatever necessity is about to force upon him
He can never die against his will, and thus doesn’t fear death
How does Seneca create humour? [2]
He is self-deprecating when he describes his constant sickness
He reminds us humorously that when he has an asthma attack he reassures himself - silently of course because he can’t breathe
Physicians call asthma “practising how to die”
