ANCIENT&
not so ancient
WISDOM
offering a weekly positive perspective
February
26, 2004
One
should count each day a separate life.
- Lucius Annaeus Seneca (4 BC - AD 65)
Lucius
Annaeus Seneca was nicknamed the younger. Born in Spain,
Seneca was educated in Rome and became famous as a
playwright, orator, politician, dramatist, and philosopher.
He served as tutor to the young Nero, and when Nero became
Emperor in 54 AD, he retained Seneca as his advisor. For
several years, Seneca exerted a calming influence on the
young emperor. After he retired in AD 62, however, he lost
favor with his former pupil, and in AD 65, he was accused of
conspiring against Nero and was forced to commit suicide.
His
works include Stoical essays on ethical subjects,
vegetarianism, and tragedies that had a considerable
influence on Elizabethan drama. At least eight of his plays
have survived including The Trojan Women, Oedipus,
Medea, The Mad Hercules, The Phoenician
Women, Phaedra, Agamemnon and Thyestes.
All eight of these tragedies are adapted from the work of
other playwrights. Oedipus is adapted from Sophocles’
Oedipus Tyrannus, Agamemnon is adapted from
the play by Aeschylus, and the rest are adapted from the
plays of Euripides. Seneca’s adaptations freely discard scenes and
rearrange material to suit his
vision.
It
is not certain whether Seneca's plays were actually
performed in Roman theatres. A wealthy man, Seneca may have
considered it beneath him to write for the theatre. The
plays may have been intended for recitation before a small
private audience. In either case, Seneca's plays had a
profound influence on the development of the tragic form in
later times, particularly in the age of Shakespeare. Five
episodes separated by choral interludes was the standard
performance during the Renaissance, as was the use of
soliloquies (talking to one’s self) and asides. He is best
known for his scenes of violence and horror. Many
Elizabethan playwrights including Christopher Marlowe and
William Shakespeare imitated Seneca’s fascination with
magic, death, and the supernatural.
The
mind that is anxious about the future is miserable. - Lucius
Annaeus
Seneca
Wishing
you great and continued success!
Sincerely,
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