Seneca: Intro and Early Life

Research: Intro and Early Life

The first century was, in many ways, a pivotal age in the history of Rome. The arts, science, and military tactics all were changed and improved by the leaders at this time, in every way possible. Strong and often destructive emperors came and went, each leaving his own particular impact on the world and Roman society. Battles were fought, boundaries changed, and armies formed and dissolved. Historians and artists were born, and captured the people and events of the time in word and stone, uniquely and imaginatively. Like all great ages, of course, there were those who sought to examine life and contemplate it: philosophers. Commenting on Rome and the world at large, and analyzing it in every possible way, these writers' works often times are as relevant now as they were then. This is especially true of Seneca, one of the most prominent figures in philosophy and literature of the first century.

Lucius Annaeus Seneca (the younger) was born in the year 4 BC, in Carduba Spain, to a wealthy family, without any relatives in the Senate. His father, Seneca the elder, was a man of finances, and a procurator of the Imperial Government. Much less is known about his mother, although it has been speculated by historians that she had a major impact upon him and his personality in his early life. Around the year 1 AD, he was taken to Rome for an education. Here, he was taught by his aunt, who educated him in matters of government and the economy. However, as a child and adolescent, he suffered from continuous bad health, which later forced him to move to Egypt with his aunt (who had strong ties in the province) to recuperate.

Ruth T., 03'