The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius: A Study

by R.B. Rutherford

This study is designed to make the Meditations more accessible to the modern reader. Rutherford carefully explains the historical and philosophical background, charts the main themes and tendencies of Marcus's thought, and relates stylistic detail to the intellectual and moral outlook of the author. His goal is to define Marcus's aims, attitudes, and styles more precisely and restore his work to the position it held in the past, that of a spiritual classic which can be read and enjoyed by people who are not professional scholars.

Genres: Philosophy, Nonfiction

300 pages, Paperback

First published September 28, 1989

Reviews

[Mark Adderley · Rating 3 out of 5]

An excellent analysis of Marcus Aurelius' Meditations, that helped me make sense of Marcus' thought. Rutherford covers such subjects as the literary and philosophic background to the Meditations and literary genres in which they participate; he then analyzes Book 1 at length (Chapters 2-3). In the final chapters, Rutherford analyzes the contents of Marcus' meditations, focusing on what he calls "the view from above," the philosophic distance that gives objectivity to his vision of life, death, the supernatural and religion, and his relationship to Epictetus' thought. Rutherford argues that some of Marcus' thought comes not from Stoicism but from his own experiences as Emperor of Rome, and that accounts for a gloominess that Rutherford does not see in the works of Epictetus.

I wouldn't recommend this for a general reader, since it's an academic book and therefore a tough read. Many of the quotations are presented in Marcus' Greek and from other sources in Latin, and are sometimes untranslated. But its scholarship is thorough, and I found it very useful indeed.

[ForestGardenGal · Rating 5 out of 5]

An in depth study and analysis of Marcus Aurelius' Meditations, both as an exemplar of Stoic philosophy and as a literary work (though it wasn't intended for publication).

While this is dense academic material, it should be comprehensible to a layman who has read the Meditations and wants to spend time diving below the surface- but it will take perseverance. N.B. Have your Greek and Latin dictionaries at hand, or be ready to do a lot of concurrent online research for a full understanding.

Well written. Thoroughly researched and includes complete references. Beautifully edited and published.

It would be nice to have an electronic version of this to facilitate referencing and translations, but I haven't seen one yet.

[Trevor · Rating 4 out of 5]

An in-depth study Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations. It has quotations in Greek and Latin which are sometimes translated and other times not, so this book isn’t exactly meant for a general audience, but it isn’t a difficult read either. I especially liked the earlier chapters and the part near the end where the philosophies of Marcus Aurelius and Epictetus are compared to each other.

[priyanshi shah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Marcus practiced Stoicism and wrote about his own Stoic philosophy stating a series of spiritual ideas— designed to make him kind, patient, empathetic, calm, and strong.It is a book of short paragraphs not organized by format and because of which the flow of the reader is lost.

[Frank Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

A classic of classics. Always good to reread every few years.

[Italo Italophiles · Rating 5 out of 5]

While, to me, much of the Meditations reads as a drunken or drug induced rant by a tired and life-weary man, they have their moments of interest.

While sometimes called a treatise on the stoic life, the writings of Marcus Aurelius are more a diary of his reflections while on campaigns to defend fringes of the Roman Empire from invasion by enemy hordes. Marcus Aurelius was, unique for a reflective person, also a man of action when necessary, successfully defending the Empire during his years as Emperor from 161 to 180 A.D. from revolts in the East and enemy tribes in the North.

Read the full and illustrated review at Italophile Book Reviews at
http://italophilebookreviews.blogspot...

[David Navarro · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book, enjoyed the thoughts and meditations. Stimulated thinking.