Breakfast with Seneca

A Stoic Guide to the Art of Living

De: David Fideler

Narrado por: Paul Heitsch

The first clear and faithful guide to the timeless, practical teachings of the Stoic philosopher Seneca.

Stoicism, the most influential philosophy of the Roman Empire, offers refreshingly modern ways to strengthen our inner character in the face of an unpredictable world. Widely recognized as the most talented and humane writer of the Stoic tradition, Seneca teaches us to live with freedom and purpose. His most enduring work, over a hundred "Letters from a Stoic" written to a close friend, explains how to handle adversity; overcome grief, anxiety, and anger; transform setbacks into opportunities for growth; and recognize the true nature of friendship.

In Breakfast with Seneca, philosopher David Fideler mines Seneca's classic works in a series of focused chapters, clearly explaining Seneca's ideas without oversimplifying them. Best enjoyed as a daily ritual, like an energizing cup of coffee, Seneca's wisdom provides us with a steady stream of time-tested advice about the human condition - which, as it turns out, hasn't changed much over the past 2,000 years.

©2022 David Fideler (P)2021 Ascent Audio

Great audiobook

Great audiobook on the teachings of Seneca, whose Stoic philosophy is as relevant today, in a world of fake pandemics & false flags, as it was 2,000+ years ago during the tyrannical Roman Empire.

Good Guidance

This book was well written and narrated, and contained lots of useful ideas to think about for living a good life. I plan to come back to this one for a re-read in the future.

Virtue is the path to peace

Long been a fan of Zeno,Seneca ,Epictetus and the Stoics,Greek and Roman.This is a wonderful review of Seneca’s wisdom and teaching spiritually and practically applied.Each of the chapters is 35-45 minutes long.My grandson and I will be listening each day we are together this Summer.This is great family listening.Well written and wonderfully read.Thank you

Almost a cliff notes to Senecas Letters to Lucelius

This is an engaging book that is close to a cliff notes version of Seneca’s letters to Lucelius; The latter is equally relevant today. Fideler expands on this to tie it to Socrates, Aristotle and Roman history. The chapters on death, gratitude and how to comfort those who have lost a friend or family member are excellent. Each has some takeaways and a Stoic perspective that can help us grow and transition.

Buy the actual book

This is a great book. However, the narrator was like listening to someone scratching a chalk board. I think I will simply buy a copy and read it on my own.

Awesome

It tingled with timeless wisdom. Most comfortable read and a reality that resonates. It could be all about the reality someone creates for themselves by a paradigm that only comes with age. Actually it was hopeful and refreshing,

Thoroughly enjoyable

Simple, concise, and enjoyable. If you are a student of Stoicism, a worthy listen indeed. Already listened to twice so I recommend it.

A Philosophical Breakfast

Breakfast with Seneca

I’ve been grappling with stoic philosophy for a few years now, and as much as I appreciate modern Stoicism in general, I have started feeling like there were too many books that tread the same territory using different words and editing The cohesiveness of stoic philosophy to suit they’re particular taste. And while that can be useful for some, it irritated me.

This is one of two books I don’t really feel is guilty of that. This paints a pretty holistic picture of the way Seneca thought of his philosophy, as well as maintaining his pension toward philosophical eclecticism. This is another “stoicism for beginners” book. But what his book does differently, is what I think makes it more valuable than a lot of others. It dives into Seneca specifically, only using other sources incidentally where it helps elucidate Seneca’s points.

The other thing is that it doesn’t shy away from the Roman conception of Stoic cosmopolitanism, reducing the philosophy to a series of life hacks, nor does it shy away from the stoic conception of the logos, fate, the gods, etc.

Personally, I found my way back to philosophy in general, and Stoicism more specifically after spending a year in therapy, specifically engaged in cognitive behavioral therapy. And I found that while the therapeutic protocol itself was very helpful, after I “graduated“ I wondered where all of these techniques, clinically glorified versions of the life hack version of stoic philosophy, fit into a larger framework. So I began to study. I begin to rebuild who I was into who I wanted to be.

If I had had this book from the beginning, that process would’ve gone far more smoothly. I have always found Seneca to be the most approachable of the big three, by himself, and this book makes him all the more approachable. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who is interested in stoic philosophy, or in the way Seneca sees it. This is definitely a great way to start the day! This is one of two of the best introductions to it that I have found, the other being “how to think like a Roman emperor“ by Donald Robertson.

Good distillation of stoicism philosophy

While sometimes dry, this work gives a good summary of Seneca and his extensive writings. It's amazing to think they're is so much to learn form over two millennia ago.

Good introduction to Stoicism

I liked the book because it introduces Stoicism from Seneca’s perspective. It complements the views of other authors that presented Stoicism from Epictetus and Marcus Aurelius teachings.