Chapter 1, Forerunners Summary and Analysis

The first chapter of the book begins with a section about Seneca the Younger who is born in 3 A.D. and dies in 65 A.D. Seneca the Younger's father is a rhetorician and writer and Seneca the Younger becomes a renowned orator and writer also. He is a philosopher of the Stoics although many of his actions in life are not those of a true Stoic. A Stoic is supposed to be a wise man who plays the cards that are dealt to him and never complains of his station and always has dignity. Much of Seneca's life is very human as he gains wealth, complains about misfortune and curries favor. His death is considered to be a show of his beliefs in that he takes his own life at the request of the king, Nero. Seneca is known...