Senecan ‘Meta-Stoicality’

In the Cognitive Grasp of Atreus

Bibliographic Data

ID9664848
AuthorsJohn Stevens (0000-0002-9867-7209), John R Stevens (0000-0002-2908-7918, East Carolina University, corresponding author)
Year2018
Volume68
Issue2
Pages573-590
Publication date2018-12-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueThe Classical Quarterly (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0009-8388 • E-ISSN: 1471-6844
PublisherCambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1017/s0009838818000460
OpenAlexW2904626426
LanguageEN
Citations received1
References cited26

The first act of Thyestes is a challenge to the theory that the same Seneca wrote both the philosophica and the tragedies. We are compelled by the evil genius of Atreus and not by the common virtue of his Satelles . Atreus not only feels no compunction at his words, but seems to hone his evil from the prodding. It is the death of philosophy, the anti-mirror of the prince: the tyrant is not reformed, but becomes more himself—more perfectly tyrannical. It is a performance of Socrates’ monster in Republic 9—the soul composed of a hydra of desires with its ring of heads constantly changing, a lion of anger and a small man, who is to domesticate the hydra like a farmer and befriend the lion (588c–589b). The ineffectual Satelles portrays the hopeless plight of Plato's ‘little man reason’ before a lion with monstrous desires like Atreus. There is a place left for philosophy to win over the tyrant only if the Satelles does not represent all that reason can do, and stands instead only for gentlemanly virtue or common sense, which lacks the kind of logos needed to control the beast

Art · Epistemology · Genius · Literature · Logos Bible Software · Monster · SOCRATES · Soul · Theology · Virtue · Classical Antiquity Studies · Classical Philosophy and Thought · Historical, Religious, and Philosophical Studies · Philosophy