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Three of Plato's dialogues, Apology, Phaedo and Crito which epitomize the Socratic question-and-answer style turned philosophy, with the inevitable conclusion of Socrates' death.

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An excellent second book to a great collection of books.
Volume Two of the Harvard Classics contains the following:
* The Apology, Phædo and Crito, by Plato
* The Golden Sayings, by Epictetus
* The Meditations, by Marcus Aurelius

"Apology" is Plato's version of the self-defense speech by Socrates when he was put on trial. From a historical standpoint, Plato's version is different from The Memorable Thoughts of Socrates, since Plato was one of Socrates' major disciples. The Phaedo and Crito were both dialogues and detailed the time from after the trial until Socrates' final days.

The Golden Sayings of Epictetus was perhaps my favorite part of this Volume. After reading Plato, which was difficult at times to get through, the Golden Sayings were simple and I could appreciate and enjoy the notions of kindness and compassion towards our fellow human beings along with controlling the things we can control: ourselves. Pretty simple, and slick.

Marcus Aurelius' "Meditations" was essentially a personal memoir, but still based in the Stoic Philosophers like Epictetus. It's not sure that if he ever planned on having them published considering "Meditations" lacked any flourish, which was in direct contrast with Plato's writings of Socrates. It makes for a good read with a lot of inspiring quotes.

Overall, I'm happy for having read this, even if Plato's "worship" of Socrates tended to drag on. Volume Three is next! ... Read more

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An Excellent Harvard Classic. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

The Philosopher King
Marcus Aurelius's Meditations is a thoughtful set of personal reflections on living and the purpose of life. The cornerstone of his philosophy was Stoicism, which does come across as a bit severe. There are many timeless maxims and thoughts expressed in his notes that are certainly worth remembering and even trying to apply to one's own life today. Some of the well-known quotes and themes expressed include being content with what you have, leading a virtuous life by demonstrating such traits as justice, piety, modesty and so forth, and living each day as if it were your last.

Aurelius believed in the gods and certainly states throughout this book his conception of the natural order of things as they established. We are seen as only insignificant parts of the whole; whether we live a long live or die young, it doesn't really matter. Death should be accepted as part of that plan. All things that happen are for a reason. His is certainly a carpe diem type mentality, though indulging in pleasure doesn't really figure in. Happiness, to Aurelius, is finding yourself and being content with where you are and understanding your role and leading a virtuous life. Don't let your actions be governed by winning the approval of others. Seek tranquility deep within yourself. Avoid passions. These are just some of the many statements and views incorporated into the philosophy espoused by this Roman Emperor. Though he was no supporter of Christianity, from what I understand, you can't help but see a few similarities between some areas of Christian thought and Aurelius's philosophy, at lease on a few points.

Unlike another book by Barnes and Noble I recently read, also part of their library of essential reading, this book has an introduction (which the other one had, but given the length of the other book, more information would have been useful) and helpful concluding sections on the historical Marcus Aurelius and his philosophy. This book is difficult at times, but more often than not, you will grasp the essence of the ideas being conveyed. Timeless. ... Read more

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Book Description:

"This Roman Stoic hands down the day-to-day principles on which an all-powerful Emperor ruled for the welfare of the people." (Quote from bartleby.com)

Table of Contents:

Publisher's Preface; Book One; Book Two; Book Three; Book Four; Book Five; Book Six; Book Seven; Book Eight; Book Nine; Book Ten; Book Eleven; Book Twelve

About the Publisher:

Forgotten Books is a publisher of historical writings, such as: Philosophy, Classics, Science, Religion, Esoteric and Mythology. www.forgottenbooks.org

Forgotten Books is about sharing information, not about making money. All books are priced at wholesale prices. We are also the only publisher we know of to print in large sans-serif font, which is proven to make the text easier to read and put less strain on your eyes. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Amateur publication...
The first thing to greet me when I opened my newly arrived Forgotten Books edition of the Meditations was the following paragraph:

"...this book has been scanned and reformatted from the original, and as such we cannot guarantee that it is free from errors or contains the full content of the original."

Charming. There is no foreward from the translator as one would expect from a quality publication and the cover looks like it was done in 10 minutes in MSPaint. That combined with the above paragraph makes the whole book seem amateurish...

As for the actual text, the translator seems to sacrifice clarity for a somewhat archaic style of English which does have its appeal, however I tend to regard the former as more important in a book of philosophy. I recommend instead either the Oxford Classic or the Penguin Classics edition.

Verbose and Unneccisarily Romantic Language
I love reading Marcus Aurelius but George Long's translation is painful.Marcus Aurelius's thoughts and philosophical concepts are complex enough without the flowery verbosity and the unnecessary King James English.

Emperors book of wisdom
This book will give you the rare opportunity to read a book of wisdom written by a Roman Emperor. Marcus Aurelius was a well liked emperor you lived from 120 A.D. to 180 A.D. ruling in the late part of his life. The book's theme is to live your life in balance with the universe. Do your duty and fulfill the role the "Gods" put you on earth to do. Let reason be your master always doing what is beneficial to all. Do not sin because you only sin against yourself. Why worry about correcting others behaviors when you have so much uncompleted work to do on yourself. If you enjoy reading Plato, Epictetus, or philosophy in general I know you will enjoy reading this book, it is truly packed with wisdom and will take you back to Roman times and let you see how the wise among them thought before the dark ages and modern religion came on the stage of civilization. Very interesting read. ... Read more

Product Description
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. ... Read more

Product Description
The book has no illustrations or index. It may have numerous typos or missing text. However, purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original rare book from the publisher's website (GeneralBooksClub.com). You can also preview excerpts of the book there. Purchasers are also entitled to a free trial membership in the General Books Club where they can select from more than a million books without charge. Original Publisher: Bell; Publication date: 1892; Subjects: Ethics; Stoics; Life; History / Ancient / Rome; Philosophy / General; Philosophy / History ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Excellent Translation
Wisdom abounds in this edition of Aurelius work.Simply a book that must be on every shelf of anyone who calls himself a serious thinker! ... Read more

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"The Sages of Old Live Again in Us."

With the aim of making the philosophy of Marcus Aurelius approachable for a contemporary reader, author Méric Casaubon introduces the historical and philosophical milieu that resulted in one of the remarkable philosophical classics of all time.

Long remembered for his unmistakable wisdom and the golden age attributed to his peaceful rule, Marcus Aurelius was emperor of Rome from 161 to 180 A.D. According to Casaubon, "truly a rare opportunity was given to Marcus Aurelius of showing what the mind can do in despite of circumstances. [He was the] most peaceful of warriors, a magnificent monarch whose ideal was quiet happiness in home life, yet born to greatness . . ."

The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius is as vital today as it ever was. No other philosopher shows us more clearly what it means to cultivate a peaceful mind in the face of everything that life throws our way. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (1)

The Wisdom of an Emperor Philosopher
After being a fan of Epictetus for a few years, I decided I wanted to expand my Stoic philosopher experiences. I chose to read Marcus Aurelius' "Meditations," and quickly discovered that this classic book has many different versions. In all honesty, I am not sure that I picked the best version.

While I certainly felt that this version was a good read, I would be hard-pressed to call "Meditations" a `classic' just based on this version. I struggled to give this version a 4-star rating, but did so out of the overall value of the thoughts and wisdom of Marcus Aurelius. If you want to read a true Stoic's personal insights on and observations of life, death, integrity, goodness, and happiness, then you cannot go wrong with this version of "Meditations."

What I did not like about this book was that I found it very wordy and repetitive. From the perspective of being a man's personal recollections, it may have been a very accurate and literal translation, but from a reader's perspective, I would have much preferred a more coherent and organized collection of Marcus Aurelius' maxims and musings. Out of respect for the accomplishments and reputation of Marcus Aurelius, I am compelled to read other versions of "Meditations" to see which version I like best.
(This review is about a previous "Penguin Classics" version translated by Maxwell Staniforth)

... Read more

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In Two Volumes. This scarce antiquarian book is included in our special Legacy Reprint Series. In the interest of creating a more extensive selection of rare historical book reprints, we have chosen to reproduce this title even though it may possibly have occasional imperfections such as missing and blurred pages, missing text, poor pictures, markings, dark backgrounds and other reproduction issues beyond our control. Because this work is culturally important, we have made it available as a part of our commitment to protecting, preserving and promoting the world's literature. ... Read more

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A translation of the classic works by Marcus Aurelius. ... Read more

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THIS 22 PAGE ARTICLE WAS EXTRACTED FROM THE BOOK: Tongues of Fire a Bible of Sacred Scriptures of the Pagan World, by Grace H. Turnbull. To purchase the entire book, please order ISBN 0766101487. ... Read more

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This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Product Description
This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process.We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide.We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

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Originally published in 1898.This volume from the Cornell University Library's print collections was scanned on an APT BookScan and converted to JPG 2000 format by Kirtas Technologies.All titles scanned cover to cover and pages may include marks notations and other marginalia present in the original volume. ... Read more

Product Description
The book has no illustrations or index. It may have numerous typos or missing text. However, purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original rare book from the publisher's website (GeneralBooksClub.com). You can also preview excerpts of the book there. Purchasers are also entitled to a free trial membership in the General Books Club where they can select from more than a million books without charge. Original Publisher: New York Harper; Publication date: 1893; Subjects: Rome; History / Ancient / General; History / Ancient / Rome; Juvenile Nonfiction / History / Ancient; ... Read more