Ancient Greece and Rome

A conversation led by Socrates asks what justice is, and imagines a city ruled by philosophers to answer it. Along the way comes the tale of a magic ring that makes its wearer invisible.

14h 52m reading time

A Roman emperor writes private notes to himself on how to stay calm, fair, and humble. He never meant them for others, and the first book simply thanks the people who shaped him.

3h 57m reading time

A small handbook of short, practical rules for staying calm, drawn from the teaching of a former slave. It begins by dividing everything into what is in our power and what is not.

30 min reading time

A set of lectures asks what makes a human life truly happy, and how habit builds good character. Each virtue sits between two extremes, so courage lies between cowardice and recklessness.

6h 48m reading time

Socrates defends himself in court against charges of corrupting the young and offending the gods. Found guilty, he suggests his punishment should be free meals for life at public expense.

1h 7m reading time

On the last day of his life, Socrates talks with friends in prison about death and the soul. It ends with him calmly drinking the poison he was sentenced to take.

2h 52m reading time

A study of how cities are governed, comparing kingship, rule by the few, and rule by the many. It is the source of the famous claim that humans are by nature political animals.

6h 10m reading time

Short essays and letters cover anger, grief, the shortness of life, and how to find peace of mind. The essay on mercy is addressed to the young emperor Nero, whom Seneca had tutored.

59 min reading time

A shortened English retelling of a Roman thinker's advice on kindness, anger, and living a happy life. A long section looks at gifts and favors: how to give them well, and how to receive them.

7h 45m reading time

Short passages from the talks of a Greek teacher on how to stay free and calm whatever happens. Born a slave, Epictetus taught that chains can hold the body but never the will.

1h 43m reading time

Sayings of a Greek teacher, arranged by topic, on living well by caring only about what you control. Epictetus spent his youth as a slave, yet he taught that true freedom lives in the mind.

3h 52m reading time

This philosophical dialogue examines whether beauty and other qualities exist apart from the things that possess them. A young Socrates faces questions from the elderly Parmenides, rather than leading the discussion himself.

2h 36m reading time

Two imagined conversations examine what makes a true friend and how to face old age. The elderly Cato defends later life, including its pleasures of farming and conversation.

2h reading time

A dialogue follows Socrates and the teacher Protagoras as they debate whether goodness can be taught. Protagoras tells a myth in which humans receive fire but still need justice to live together.

1h 52m reading time

This short treatise examines how words describe things and how those things can be grouped. Examples such as a particular horse help distinguish individual things from broader groups.

57 min reading time

In this dialogue, Socrates and two generals discuss courage and how young men should be taught. A display of fighting in armor sparks a debate that neither general can settle.

49 min reading time

In this short dialogue, Socrates questions a performer of Homer's poems about the source of his skill. A magnet and a chain of iron rings become an image of poetry's power over its listeners.

27 min reading time

These two short works describe Germanic peoples and recount a Roman governor's life in Britain. The British leader Calgacus condemns Roman conquest in a speech before battle.

1h 39m reading time

A conversation between Socrates and Phaedrus examines love and the art of speaking well. Beside a stream outside Athens, Socrates pictures the soul as a chariot pulled by two very different horses.

2h 38m reading time

Guests at an Athenian drinking party give speeches about love in this philosophical dialogue. Aristophanes tells a strange story of humans split in two, each searching for a missing half.

2h 13m reading time

In this dialogue, Socrates and Meno ask whether people can be taught to be good. Socrates questions an enslaved boy about a square to test how people learn.

1h 32m reading time

A short dialogue follows Socrates and Euthyphro as they question what makes an action holy. Outside an Athenian court, Euthyphro explains why he is bringing a murder charge against his own father.

38 min reading time

In this short dialogue, Socrates and his friend Crito discuss whether he should escape prison before his execution. The debate takes a surprising turn when Socrates imagines the laws of Athens speaking to him.

27 min reading time

This short study examines how poetry and plays tell stories, with special attention to tragedy. The story of Oedipus helps explain why a sudden discovery can change the course of a play.

1h 3m reading time

This epic poem follows Odysseus on his long journey home after the Trojan War. In one encounter, he escapes a one-eyed giant by hiding beneath a ram.

8h 8m reading time