Stoicism tends to make a deeper impression on individuals who enjoy solitude, or at least, who don’t dislike it. The reason is not difficult to fathom. Solitude begets thoughtfulness, which then begets a drive for self-improvement.
Seneca was conscious of this fact. In his 7th Letter to Lucilius, Seneca advises that, without a fair measure of solitude, it is difficult to focus on what really counts in life.
In contrast, if we are surrounded by crowds and noise all the time, chances are that we’ll align our behaviour with our peers. Gregarious people tend to succumb to social pressure far more readily than loners do.
The warning against exaggerated gregariousness is one the key insights from Seneca’s philosophy. He had nothing against socialising, especially with friends and family, but only to a reasonable extent.
Why did Seneca call for setting limits to gregariousness? Because it can become too much of a good thing. If we engage in exaggerated socialising, Seneca explained, we run the risk of undermining our moral autonomy.
Seneca on excessive gregariousness
In his 7th Letter to Lucilius, Seneca enunciated this principle negatively and positively, providing us examples of what to avoid and what to do. Those examples will still resonate with today’s readers.
Seneca’s negative formulation is warning readers against the worry and anxiety ensuing from adopting other people’s values without having thought them through. Don’t adopt the ideas of the loud, thoughtless crowd, wrote Seneca, because erroneous ideas might lead to catastrophe.
In his positive formulation, Seneca praises self-reliance and non-conformity, not as acts of blind rebellion, but as signs of reason. The important thing, explained Seneca, is to align our actions with reason, even doing so places us in a minority.
Today, more than ever, we need regular periods of solitude to review facts and make correct decisions. The primary value of solitude, Seneca clarified, is to put some distance between our soul and society’s pressures.
Seneca took for granted that the periods of solitude are to be spent mostly in silence, preferably in nature. We need silence, so that we can organize our thoughts, assess the situation, and draw accurate conclusions.
Seneca on quietness and reflection
Silence, in Seneca’s conception, does not mean an absolute absence of noise. It does not mean total quietness. A weekend on a countryside farm might include noise from cows, birds or dogs, but those will normally not interrupt our train of thought.
Seneca was referring to an absolute absence of chatter and random conversations. If we are surrounded by those, we won’t be able to raise our reflections beyond a superficial level.
If we are engaged in polite conversations about the weather, we will not be able to ponder about the meaning of life, set our long-term goals, and establish a plan for the next decade. There is no way to think deeply while talking superficially.
Seneca rightly viewed self-reliance as the corollary of long, quiet thinking. Firm convictions need time to emerge, integrate and solidify. It takes effort and dedication to build one’s soul.
Aristotle (384-322 BC) had defined integration as the inner coherence of our convictions, beliefs and goals. It means that they are all pointing in the same direction. In doing so, they complement and reinforce each other.
Integration is a requisite of self-reliance. In his 7th Letter to Lucilius, Seneca observed that, in the absence of well-thought convictions, we will fall prey to social pressure, flattery and other types of manipulation.
A fair part of one’s periods of solitude should be devoted to studying, Seneca recommended in his 79th Letter to Lucilius. I must point out that, in his 79th Letter, Seneca had employed the word “studying” instead of “reading,” but I regard “reading” as closer to Seneca’s intent.
Seneca on reading and studying
In Seneca’s lifetime, books were copied by hand at great expense and hard to come by. Even wealthy people would only possess a few books and read them multiple times. That’s why, for the Ancient Romans, reading was synonymous to studying.
Thankfully, we do not have those constraints in our century. Pocket books and audio-books are inexpensive, and electronic books even more so. We can purchase many of them, read or listen only to those that are really worth it, and discard the rest without giving it a second thought.
Nonetheless, Seneca’s recommendation remains valid. If we want to make the best of our life, we should devote part of our time and energy to acquiring knowledge. Seneca considered the process of reading as becoming alive or becoming a better person, which are the equivalents of the modern term “personal growth.”
Seneca warns us against imitating Cicero (106-43 BC), who was so busy with his professional obligations that hardly had any time left for reading. In order to make time for reading, the likes of Cicero and Seneca had to retire to the countryside to escape the demands of daily life.
We can do better than them thanks to the availability of audio-books, pocket books, and electronic books. Let us heed Seneca’s advice, engage in regular periods of reflection, raise our knowledge, and accelerate our self-development.
If you are interested in putting rational ideas into practice in all kinds of situations, I recommend my book “The philosophy of builders.”
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