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Alexandra Petri's Reviews > Meditations
Meditations
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This basically consists of Marcus Aurelius repeating, "Get it together, Marcus" to himself over and over again over the course of 12 chapters.
SPOILER ALERT:
-The time during which you are alive is very very brief compared to the time during which you did not exist and will not exist.
-People who wrong you only do so from ignorance, and if you can correct them without being a jerk about it, you should do so.
-You are a little soul dragging around a corpse.
-Whether or not things injure you lies in your opinion about them, and you can control that opinion.
That's about it.
The fascinating thing about these philosophical ideas is that if they were expressed a single time, they might seem profound and solid and convincing. But repeated over and over like a rosary, you feel that Marcus is struggling against really serious grueling daily doubt -- that these are things that he wishes to be true, not things that he knows to be true, normative rather than descriptive statements. Which makes for a fascinating and subtext-y read, especially given his history.
SPOILER ALERT:
-The time during which you are alive is very very brief compared to the time during which you did not exist and will not exist.
-People who wrong you only do so from ignorance, and if you can correct them without being a jerk about it, you should do so.
-You are a little soul dragging around a corpse.
-Whether or not things injure you lies in your opinion about them, and you can control that opinion.
That's about it.
The fascinating thing about these philosophical ideas is that if they were expressed a single time, they might seem profound and solid and convincing. But repeated over and over like a rosary, you feel that Marcus is struggling against really serious grueling daily doubt -- that these are things that he wishes to be true, not things that he knows to be true, normative rather than descriptive statements. Which makes for a fascinating and subtext-y read, especially given his history.
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Started Reading
December 28, 2014
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Finished Reading
December 29, 2014
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rated it 3 stars
Aug 18, 2016 01:18PM
Spot. On.
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I agree. Towards the end I had to wonder if he was so insecure about life, death and fame to be so repetitive.
From the Dover Thrift Edition introduction:"It was [at the Danube during renewed hostilities with German tribes], in the intervals of battle, that Marcus wrote down his Meditations, which he originally titled 'To Himself, apparently intending them merely as a series of private reflections. He died at the military camp on March 17, 189, at the age of fifty-nine."
IMO, this bit of insight (private notes in a wartime setting near the end of his life) goes a long way in shedding light on the arguably rambling and *very* repetitive structure of what otherwise might seem a collection of profound and insightful reflections.
Totally agree with this review.
My thoughts exactly! Thanks for sharing.
In my point of view that is what gives value to this book. He was one of the most powerful man on earth, a leader and carrying a big burden. And like every common human you can see his anxieties, his struggling to keep on the right path.
We are totally on the same page! I laughed out loud at the part where Marcus said, to save time, stop doing the unnecessary. Well....writing the same thing over and over is a classic example of unnecessary, lol.
I couldn't say it better. A 3 star review and the stress over the 'repetitive things' in his book it's a very honest review.
How exactly are you people judging some one else's personal journal? Especially someone that lived centuries ago? Jesus this is cringeworthy
Probably Alexandra Petri did not understand how many deep topics Marcus Aurelius discussed here - simple examples: life and death, how to be a good man, destructive behaviors people commit (Marcus Aurelius said that having sex with slaves is very bad for building a strong character), importance of not being afraid to ask for help and many more.I would definitely advice her and everyone who supported her opinion to reread the book.
I thought the introduction addressed the purpose of the repetition rather well.
You know this was never something meant for publishing, and that it's an accident of history that we even get to read this? you're right he is convincing himself of these things, because he has no audience.
This is spot on. I had the same feeling when reading through 12 chapters in the book
Is the writing of this book(penguin classic) is difficult to understand or the ideas or both?
"He was under constant attack, and pressure of Nervous Breakdown proportions daily...This was no easy laid back Pop-Psychology Philosophy
I don't agree with the negative opinion, I love this book and I keep it in my purse to read in emergencies. (That in addition to my regular book, I am a reading freak) but I have to say this summery is fantastic, complete, and accurate; if a bit snarky.
The Review is definitely not complete.. The Depth of his thoughts are both sublime, profound, and practical
That's all you have to say about this book and you called that a review? You seem to be lacking in intelligence since so many very important and valuable things went over your head in this book.
Maciej, your comment is very revealing. Is that rudeness and condescension something you learned from reading Marcus Aurelius? Great to see you putting his philosophy into practice, I'm sure he'd be so proud of that coherent, well reasoned defence of his thoughts ;)
I'm obivoussly born 1971 even if I don't look like it. I would put this down as a 5.I read all of Wittgenstein, Heideger, Quine, etc, who cares. Then I found the stoics, as a natural evolution of Aristoteles, Plato and Herakleitos.
I have a Master's in Philosophy from 1998 and found that Philosophy mainly consists of academics who need to get their hed out of their a--
Beer is much better.
There is no such thing as knowing a thing to be true; doubt is the natural state. Or else walk across thin air when you believe it to hold you up. - That is me.
Marcus is Struggling, exactly, with what we all are. There's no certainty beyond that. Most academic and professional philosophers are a sad Tale.
Comma sign people living in ideal words and chasing grants. Life can be extended, this and that.
Sokrates was not. Neither Aristoteles. Neither Epictetus. But why? Because of a life lived.
To think that one of the most powerful humans in history had self doubts and fear in the face of death, shocking :/ That's the whole point, for us to learn that no amount of power and money will stop the self doubting and the fear of death. It is the unescapable human nature for anyone with half a brain. Aurelius never said his reflections are any sort of truth, he just reminds himself of the rules he chose to live by. In the face of constant struggle and death, any one of us would crack like a stick, while he remained sane from mere mental repetition and strength of character. It is not strong the one who never struggles, but the one who rises above the pain. Any human in history that denies this struggle is either stupid or a liar.
You’re spot on. And I love this because even though he was a great Roman emperor, he had his struggles, and I can relate. It makes it feel more like he’s going through life with me instead of standing up on a podium and telling me how it is.
Well Said Justin,"Be like the headland against which the waves break and break " Marcus Aurelius
Most of us can't improve ourselves after a single realisation, I read it as being the same for Marcus.
Marcus never meant for his writings to be published. All his writings were for himself. When you journal on a regular basis you realise that most of your thoughts are a repeat of the same thought process. So its natural that the pages in this book repeat themselves over and over again.
It's almost as if Marcus was as human as the rest of us. He felt the same stresses and anxieties that everyone else suffers and resuffers again and again even after we think we've banished them. He wasn't writing the meditations for us. It was for himself, to keep himself balanced and on the oath that he thought was necessary. It was the musings of someone who was just another fallible human, but had the entire weight of the Roman world on his shoulders. Every word he said, policy he enacted, action he took, and army he lead held thousands of lives in the balance each and every time. The fact that these little mantras were able to help him steer the ancient world through tough times is amazing. Especially since it's pretty obvious in other sections of the book that he was horribly stressed and depressed at points, but kept moving forward anyway, for decades.
Quite agree with Michael here. There comes a time in our lives when we are able to see through a lot of things and realize their significance or insignificance. However, our habits often keep taking us away from the realization. So, it becomes almost mandatory to repeat what you've realized and try to reinforce that behavior in daily life.
This is what Indian Philosophy has been based around. Repetition once you realize something to live as per that. This is why Satsang (listening to discourses) was made part of the culture. The problem with people - they don't understand that they too repeat certain behaviour. However, they do that quite unconsciously. And when something like this is presented to them which is in stark contrast with how they've been living their lives, they are filled with a lot of inertia.
We have to get to a point where we make our own meditations to ourselves about our individual lives
I came here in hopes of finding something similar to this comment. I subscribe to every single word you wrote! Impossible to describe the book in a better way. The guy was talking to himself, he wrote this as a tool to become a better version of himself according to his believes. Don't get the general obsession with the book...
The book is a great starting point, and covers a vast area of Stoic and practical living Philosophy which seems almost Religious in it's appeal"If you are disturbed by anything not within your power, then your disturbance is due to your estimate of the event " Marcus Aurelius
This passage is almost word for word from the Great Stoic Teacher and Philosopher Epictetus, given to Marcus by his boyhood tutor
Couldn’t agree more. The guy was 100% superego on paper. He was an admirable person, to be sure, but I would’ve liked to see more of his struggles illuminated rather than just seeing the affirmations he told himself to get through those struggles. It would’ve made for a more well-rounded work and leant weight to his conclusions.
I mean this are his own thoughts written in his journal. They were never mean to be read or consumed by anyone but himself. So wishing that more of the context or more of his struggles would be illustrated is a wish only and has no connection to a potential possibility.
This is a man's diary and I'm sure as many of us write journals that are never intended to be published, read and critiqued by the multitudes centuries later.
Some of these comments are very worrying, especially since they are expressed in such an unashamedly confident, I-know-everything sort of way. I'm going to chalk it up to a tendency to want to tear down the greats rather than a deficiency of appreciation, humility, and wisdom. Good grief. To the original commenter, I think your insinuation that "repeat(ing philosophical ideas) over and over like a rosary" somehow diminishes its worth rather than amplifies it...well, that says everything we need to know about you. This is definitely someone who has no appreciation for the value of rituals like the rosary, the necessity of practice, the intentional cultivation of character. I am deeply grateful, however, that you seem to have lived a relatively safe life unburdened by some of fate's worst cards, because anyone who has been humbled by suffering and has genuinely reflected on it appreciates this masterpiece for what it is. I recommend turning to St. Augustine's description of Aurelius' life for historical context if you need a different way to look at things.
I find your comparison to the rosary especially illuminating, as it seems you have missed the importance of both!
Knowing things to be true and living them in the face of reality are two very different things. That is why repetition--meditation if you will--is a tool. Your "spoiler alert" summary does not even scratch the surface of what this book has to offer. You can revisit it a hundred times and find that different parts speak to you in ways you had never imagined. Sometimes these things, stated differently, hit the soul--surprise!--differently.
I recommend revisiting this one in the future. It may be worth it. Or, if you struggle with the format/writing style there are many wonderful guides that will help you appreciate its value.
I love "the Practicing Stoic" by Ward Farnsworth and would highly recommend it if you don't like the journal-style/primary source route.
Contrary to what other reviews don't get, is that stoicism is a philosophy for the battlefield, for obstacles, and for facing limitations. The aesthetics-focused existence and the intellectual self-masturbation that some critics may prefer - and who unsurprisingly left reviews lower than 4 stars - aren't the paths one takes in forging his character. Marcus' thoughts - written at the frontiers of the Empire - can be easily read as metaphors for overcoming and healing moral and emotional obstacles that prevent one from reaching an ideal in body-mind-soul. This ideal isn't only limited to annihilating one's nature (even if that is what Marcus seems primarily to care about), instead, it's eliminating those aspects of nature that drown one (and they're fairly subjective) to allow more room for the pursued ideals to grow and develop (which again, are fairly subjective). The reason why I dislike literary critics is that words are put above pragmatism. Stoicism isn't an art to be analyzed and opine about, Stoicism is a philosophical toolkit for the people that put themselves out there in the world. Repetition of many ideas is just self-redirection to those actions that one aims to manifest and that sometimes may go contrary to one's impulses (I mean, you really need to have balls of steel to be an Emperor that can do basically anything and still retreat into thoughts that I must reject my sexual urges, my desire for recognition, etc.). So my advice is to see the story and the person behind the words, because once you do that, words take more weight and "you get it".
This is actually a very accurate review
I’m only on page 28 and have already loved a bunch of things I’ve read. That is because I know well enough that I know very little or even anything at all. There is a lot of value here.
"Be like the headland against which the waves break and break; until the watery tumult around it subsides" Marcus Aurelius Meditations
I have to tell you that the first line of your book review is the single best review I’ve ever seen. I’ve quoted you whenever I’ve mentioned this book or its author ever since!
Very disagree. Sure there are moments. But as a whole, if you were not able to do some self reflection about your own habits or views, I really don't know what to tell you. On Book 5 and there has been a number of passages that have made me reflect on mortality, relationships, motivations, etc.
Mert wrote: "How exactly are you people judging some one else's personal journal? Especially someone that lived centuries ago? Jesus this is cringeworthy"It is judged based on identification, the light at the end of the tunnel, coming full circle, and relevancy to the reader for starters, my question is why are you embarrassed?
I don't know! Something about the repetition makes it even more enjoyable. He argues that the animal instinct in us that comes so naturally has to be tamed and used as fire for the logical and well-reasoned action. To do that, it requires constant reminder to be grounded again and again. It's a diary at the end of the day 🤓
that makes this into a better book, not a worse one
