Nashville Great Books Discussion Group

A reader's group devoted to the discussion of meaningful books.

Friday, June 13, 2008

M. AURELIUS: Meditations (Book 1)

Reading Marcus Aurelius is almost like listening to him speak. He’s direct and to the point and makes an impression right from the start: Mr. Aurelius is a no-nonsense kind of guy. He’s thankful for his upbringing and gives full credit for his own character formation to his family and teachers. He tells us that he was lucky because “I didn’t have to waste my time in the public schools but had good tutors at home instead and learned that one cannot spend too much money on such things.” Aurelius would probably have been a big proponent of the Great Books Program. But he doesn’t come off as a bookish sort of man. His tutor taught him “to love hard work, to limit my desires, to rely on myself, to keep my nose out of other people’s affairs, and to turn a deaf ear to gossip.” Those aren’t the kinds of things one gets from reading books. Aurelius was fortunate to have a good family, good teachers, and good friends. Even the gods come in for a share of thanks: “I thank the gods that when I became interested in philosophy I did not fall into the hands of a sophist, or throw away my time reading fictive histories, sifting through obscure arguments, or gazing at the stars.”

Aurelius knows more about his own life than we do. No one can argue about his having good family, teachers and friends because we weren’t there. What’s interesting though is why Aurelius chose to list the particular virtues he’s thankful for receiving. He’s thankful for specific things like having been taught “a keen interest in any proposal for the public good” for example, or “to be vigilant in managing the affairs of the empire…” These aren’t the virtues most ordinary men need to function. Nowhere does Aurelius state that he’s thankful to Smith for teaching him geometry or thankful to Jones for teaching him how to tie his sandals. An emperor has more important things to do. Anyone can determine the truth of a Euclidean proof. Very few of us have what it takes to run a company or a government agency, much less a whole nation or an empire. Reading the Meditations puts us in the presence of a truly great man.

That would be fine if we aspired to be emperors some day. But can M. Aurelius provide guidance to middle class folks living in Nashville, Tennessee in 2008? That’s a good question. The basic question is this: do the values that served M. Aurelius as emperor in ancient Rome still hold true for ordinary modern Americans? That leads to an even more basic question: do values change with the times? Now we’re getting to the bedrock of philosophical speculation. But we’ve already seen that Aurelius is “interested in philosophy” but not interested in merely “gazing at the stars.” He’s a practical man and that trait alone would appeal to many modern Americans. Aurelius didn’t have access to the Internet or movies or TV commercials but he tells us that “I learned to shun trivialities; to doubt the claims of wonder-workers and wizards about spells and exorcisms…” This is clearly not the kind of man to sit around watching TV reality shows or cruising through You Tube sites on the Internet. So how would a man like Aurelius live in today’s world? He’s already told us how to do it: I should learn “to love hard work, to limit my desires, to rely on myself, to keep my nose out of other people’s affairs, and to turn a deaf ear to gossip.” In some circles this attitude may be considered hopelessly old-fashioned and unsophisticated. For that matter, it may have been considered old-fashioned and unsophisticated in ancient Rome too. But this is a new era in history. It’s a fast paced world now and you’ve got to keep up with what’s going on or you’ll fall behind. As they say these days: you need to get with the program. Aurelius has his own program and it doesn’t seem to matter what the times are like. The times may have changed but the values of Aurelius haven’t.
-RDP

1 Comments:

Blogger SMJ said...

What’s interesting though is why Aurelius chose to list the particular virtues he’s thankful for receiving. He’s thankful for specific things like having been taught “a keen interest in any proposal for the public good” for example, or “to be vigilant in managing the affairs of the empire…” These aren’t the virtues most ordinary men need to function.

Actually, they are. Having a "keen interest in proposals for the public good" should be the concern of every citizen in a democratic society. We may not need to manage the affairs of an empire, but we need the skills (virtues) to take care of our personal life, which usually means our family and the affairs of the household. But, in addition to managing the affairs of the household, we also need to be vigilant regarding the business (political affairs) of the demos, for none of us lives on an island. Whatever affects the republic also affects us individually. Any pretense that we can ignore public policy while enjoying all the benefits of a free society is an illusion based on the mistaken idea that public and private interests are entirely separate. While it is true that the Greeks of Aristotle's time believed that the affairs of the household, being of less importance than the affairs of the polis, should be managed by women and children; in our own time, these two realms are interwoven because men and women share the burdens of social responsibility. The biggest difference between our society today and that of ancient Rome or Athens is that we now act as though the private realm (dedicated to the pursuit of wealth and pleasure) is of equal, if not greater, importance than the public domain, whose function is to ensure the happiness of all. Yet, this fallacy is quickly revealed whenever the voting public believes that government is incompetent or corrupt. A failure to properly manage the affairs of state cannot long be tolerated, anymore than a failure to manage one's own personal life.

The basic question is this: do the values that served M. Aurelius as emperor in ancient Rome still hold true for ordinary modern Americans?

Of course, the virtues (or principles) that Marcus Aurelius holds dear are not arbitrary. They are discovered through the trials and errors of living in the "real world." In that respect, they are a practical means of ordering one's life so as to live honorably and fulfill one's duty to Rome. Does that mean they are unique to life in Rome? No. No more than the Beatitudes are unique to Jerusalem. The human condition and the requirements for a good life don't vary much from one generation to another. The virtues of humility, hard work, courage, loyalty, self reliance and moderation are not likely to vanish in time, even though not everyone will emulate such behavior. Fortunately, for civilization to endure, it is not necessary for everyone to live like Marcus Aurelius; but it is vital for some to do so. Those few individuals who uphold the traditions of virtue must lead the way for the rest to follow. They are the vanguard of a better society which can only emerge when reason and good sense become the ruling authority in men's lives.

6/17/2008 9:59 AM  

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