Samobójstwo u starożytnych Rzymian na podstawie pism moralnych Lucjusza Anneusza Seneki

Abstract

Lucius Annaeus Seneca (4 B.C. – 65 A.D.), a representative of Stoic philosophy dating back to I A.D., tutor to emperor Nero and an outstanding moral authority of Rome, sentenced to death by Nero himself, without waiting for the death order to be carried out, Seneca committed suicide. According to him, suicide was morally acceptable. There were three main reasons for suicide in ancient Rome: contempt for life, a death wish, as well as looking for death out of fear of death itself. A person who made a decision to kill himself tends to search for a way to realise his aim, and frequently looks for a pleasant end of life. The philosopher describes four suicides: Cato's, Scipio's, Marcellinus's and of a Laconian boy. According to Seneca, one should abandon suicide every time it is required by the good of the loved ones: wife, father or friend. Summarising his deliberations connected with suicide, the philosopher declares that as concerns ending one's life, it is often unclear how to behave properly, and there is no universal rule to follow. Thus, in order to be able to make the right choices, especially as a non-Christian, one needs to look for guidance in the natural law. The Fifth Commandment of the Decalogue: You shall not kill, which complies with this law, reminds us that life, as the ultimate value, is inviolable – from the moment of conception till death of natural causes.