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Meditations Hardcover – 31 Mar 2020

by Marcus Aurelius (Author)

3,905 ratings

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The Meditations are a set of personal reflections by Marcus Aurelius. He writes about the vicissitudes of his own life and explores how to live wisely and virtuously in an unpredictable world.

Part of the Macmillan Collector’s Library; a series of stunning, clothbound, pocket-sized classics with gold foiled edges and ribbon markers. These beautiful books make perfect gifts or a treat for any book lover. This edition is translated by A. S. L. Farquharson and features an introduction by John Sellars.

Marcus Aurelius was a follower of the Stoic tradition of philosophy, and one of its finest advocates, both in the clarity of his writing and in the uprightness of his life. The aphorisms show how for him, as perhaps for us all, the answer to life lies in keeping a calm and rational mind, and in refusing to be cast down or alarmed by things over which we have no control.

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Product details

Hardcover: 208 pages
Publisher: Macmillan Collector's Library (31 March 2020)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1529015022
ISBN-13: 978-1529015027
Product Dimensions: 10 x 1.8 x 15.9 cm
Boxed-product Weight: 118 g
Customer Reviews: 3,905 customer ratings
Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 24,248 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #46 in Ancient & Classical Literature
- #65 in Biographies of Philosophers
- #25 in Historical Rome Biographies

Product description

Review

For many thinkers of the 19th century - from Darwin to Nietzsche - Marcus was an intellectual hero -- Mary Beard * London Review of Books * His meditations can indeed still offer all of us, historians included, worthwhile advice -- Tom Holland * Guardian *

Book Description

The private notebooks of Roman Emperor and Philosopher, Marcus Aurelius, published here with an introduction by John Sellars.

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Customer reviews

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Jake101

Book printing errors are a disappointment

Reviewed in Australia on 28 June 2019

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

I was really looking forward to this book. However when it arrived I was less than impressed. The book has been produced in a way in that the width of the front and back covers do not cover the entirety of the pages within. When you look at the book from the front, you see a few mm's of white page. It's very off putting and you can feel the difference when reading. I suspect this is a printing error associated with mass production to cut costs. Won't be buying from book depository again.

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wayne e sanday

Important work to read if you into philosophy

Reviewed in Australia on 14 September 2014

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

The thoughts if a famous stoic laid bare. What do we discover? Universal fears and frailties humankind always faces. The crux of the standpoint encapsulated on his urging for us to be solid like a promontory and weather the storms of life. Shades of Aristotle or more so Spinoza when he alludes to a supreme deity not in the form if man but the universe in total if which we are a particle of dust.

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Simon Robinson

Small text/few pages

Reviewed in Australia on 7 December 2019

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

This edition has super small text, and is only a few pages long. This saves the publishers money, but makes it an extra effort to read.

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Annotations are helpful

Reviewed in Australia on 22 January 2019

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

Great book

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Casey

Philosophy choicd

Reviewed in Australia on 29 January 2020

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

Bought this as a gift for my dads 50th, he’s really getting into philosophy, and this book was perfect

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Sam Paradice

Absolutely appalling,Contains many errors, do not buy it.

Reviewed in Australia on 18 January 2020

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

This book has multiple errors and edits throughout the text . It is not legible as a result.

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rosey dickon

Wonderful

Reviewed in Australia on 27 April 2016

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

Wonderful to dip in and out of. Amazing that there are timeless human concerns which span 2,000 odd years....

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Paul Hicks

Great Quality, Fast Delivery

Reviewed in Australia on 31 January 2019

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

Book was excellent quality and arrived quickly in the post

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Top international reviews

Amazon Customer

Appalling translation

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 20 December 2018

Verified Purchase

As a linguist and translator I have to say that this is an appalling translation. The vocabulary used is totally inappropriate for the period of antiquity in which it was written - full of Americanisms like "guys". The English grammar was so bad I couldn't follow the meaning. In the end I gave up and removed it from my device replacing it with a far better translation that did not even cost me anything. I could have done a better job myself.

118 people found this helpful

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Abhishek Debnath

About Various Translations of "Meditations"

Reviewed in India on 5 June 2019

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

"What am I doing with my soul?"

This collection of sublime thoughts compiled as a book (originally titled as "Eis Heauton", meaning: "To Himself"; original language was Greek) has never gone out of print since circa AD 161. The writer, Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, was a Roman emperor and the most renowned stoic philosopher of antiquity. My review though is not about the book itself but about the various available translations of the book.

There are three noted translations which are most readily available in market:
1. A. S. L. Farquharson's Everyman's Library hardcover edition.
2. Martin Hammond's Penguin Classics edition.
3. Gregory Hays' Modern Library edition.

The first one is the most revered edition published in 1944. Though the physical appearance of this edition is the most eye-catching with an elegantly produced hardcover binding and handsome printing, the translation seems dated and old-fashioned. If you want to exhibit your book collection in front of people, you may buy this edition. Though for reading pleasure and better understanding of the philosophy, I'll not recommend it.

The second edition by Penguin (2006) is better than the Farquharson's as far as readability is concerned, but avoid this one too. This translation is more inclined to the exactness of the original text than the readability or understandability of the writing. As it seems, this is the bestselling edition of "Meditations" as far as the Amazon's Indian website is concerned. Thanks to the Penguin Classics tag attached to it, perhaps. No matter what, this is NOT the best edition in comparison.

The last edition which is by Hays (2002), in my opinion (and as per the general consensus as well), is the best edition available. This is the most comprehensible translation of "Meditations" for the modern readers. The language is fluid and contemporary. If you want to study the thoughts of Aurelius more profoundly then get this Gregory Hays edition, paperback published by Modern Library (snapshots attached).

50 people found this helpful

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R. Linton

An accidentally hilarious translation

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 23 October 2019

Verified Purchase

This translation is completely unreadable - like maybe they just fed the text into google translate? Unfortunately I left it too long to return this for a refund, but please please please learn from my mistakes and don't order this version! As an example, this is the first couple of lines copied faithfully:

"MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS turned into born on April 26, A.D. 121. His actual name was M. Annius Verus, and he changed into sprung of a noble own family which claimed decent from Numa, 2nd King of Rome."

I was also surprised at the many references to Marcus Aurelius's many web pages:
"on the very first web page of his book..."
etc

22 people found this helpful

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Ricky

Meditations

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 11 March 2019

Verified Purchase

Just to be clear: I am reviewing the 2018 edition published by East India out of Ottowa. Amazon may - or may not - tag the review to the right item! Minus: This is obviously a revival of a very old translation, presumably rushed out to cash in on the current craze for Stoic thought. It is a clumsy translation into (now) very old fashioned English. In fact some sentences are actually meaningless. There is no index and the translator is not even credited. Plus: The introduction gives an interesting sketch of MA's life and background, although in 19th C style English. It is a handsomely produced volume - and cheap - and will do if you don't want to spend to much to have a crack at MA's take on life.

9 people found this helpful

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Tom Vaughan-Mountford

Unreadable gibberish, total scam

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 13 September 2019

Verified Purchase

DO NOT BUY! Don’t waste your money buying this abysmal translation. I have no idea how this has gained any reviews more than one star - it is largely unreadable gibberish, and the word ‘software’ should definitely not be present! Should be removed from Amazon.

8 people found this helpful

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Miss Raven

Stays with you and brings calm

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 6 February 2016

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The philosophy in this ground grounds you. Although written is 160 AD I feel it still holds resonance in today's world. Very good read, not too difficult to read like some philosophical texts can be and I would recommend it to everyone. As it's written in 'books' which equates to chapters within them it contains numbered paragraphs, sometimes leading on the same vein as the last, some switching to a different subject. It shows it stream of consciousness perfectly and also holds fascinating details about life as a roman emperor in that era

16 people found this helpful

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Jeff146

The Worst Translation from Latin to English Ever

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 22 September 2019

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Don't bother. A very poor translation by someone who needs to study the English language. Search for a recommended version. I gave up after struggling with the introduction.

6 people found this helpful

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Christos Voutsadakis

Able to change your mindset

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 8 July 2019

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

This book was my introduction to Stoicism and my first philosophical book in general. Compared to books I read afterwards, this book is easy to read, seeing as it is mostly written in standalone paragraphs. The detailed notes that accompany most of these paragraphs do indeed help in better understanding both the context in which the book was written and the ideas themselves.

As far as being "able to change your mindset" is concerned, I believe that the ideas written here can influence the outlook on many aspects of one's life, especially if they are already thinking along similar lines.

If you are interested in learning about Stoicism, this is a great place to start.

5 people found this helpful

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Jeff Griffiths

Very questionable translation...

Reviewed in Canada on 21 November 2019

Verified Purchase

Started reading at the intro... and immediately came across stuff like:

" ... MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS become born on April 26, AD 121. His actual name changed into M. Annius Verus , and he changed into sprung of a noble own family which Claimed descent from Numa, 2d King of Rome. Thus the maximum spiritual of emperors Got right here of the blood of the maximum pious of early kings. His father, Annius Verrus, had held excessive office in Rome, and his grandfather, of the identical call, were thrice Consul..."

My first reaction was "WTF?"... it appears like it was machine translated and not edited at all. Later it gets worse:

"His body changed into knowledgeable to hardihood through way of wrestling, searching, and outside video video video video games; and no matter the truth that his charter have become susceptible, he confirmed superb personal courage to encounter the fiercest boars. At the same time he changed into stored from the extravagancies of his day. The tremendous delight in Rome end up the strife of the Factions, as they have been known as, inside the circus. The racing drivers used to undertake clearly one in every of 4 shades—pink, blue, white, or green—and their partisans confirmed an eagerness in helping them which no longer some element can also furthermore additionally want to surpass."

"... outside video video video video games" (?!?!?) Seriously?

So, it's basically unreadable. No idea how this was translated, or by who, but it's clearly not what I thought I was buying. No faith that the actual meditations which follow have been faithfully translated, and I've requesting a refund.

Best avoid this one and pick a version from a reputable source.

16 people found this helpful

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James

and this book it awesome, I recommend it to those who face adversity ...

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 18 May 2016

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

Fast delivery, and this book it awesome, I recommend it to those who face adversity in their lives, I had it once before ,I actually stole it from a book shelf ...but felt bad and returned it to a charity shop, felt like it was missing from my life so I had to buy it this time.

9 people found this helpful

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Amalina Abu Bakar

Thoughtful & Deep Contemplation

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 1 March 2019

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It's impressive a man of such status has a deep understanding and awareness of the fragility of the world. It's written in classical english, took me some time to read and understand what is being said but still readable nonetheless. I sometime find myself lost in midst of reading cause I'm not used to the writing style, but as soon as I'm on track (by re-reading/looking up some word on the dictionary) there's always a little gem hidden.

One person found this helpful

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A reader BilkoBill

An insult to the book publisher's trade

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 12 December 2019

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Who on earth published this? On the last page, it says the end and printed by Amazon. It certainly wasn't designed by anyone remotely connected with the book printing industry. From what could have been an attractive, easy to read textbook had it been given to a graphic designer or someone in the publishing business, it is a disgrace. Glossy covers, perfectly bound on really inferior grade paper, set in 8pt type solidly leaded, practically unreadable. Atrocious.

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legionsofcaesar

The stoic bible

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 9 January 2020

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

I was nervous before reading this book. I have done some light reading on stoicism and watched videos on Youtube and it had become clear that this book was a must read for. The expectations had built up and I was worried that it might be a case of don't meet your heroes. Fortunately I couldn't have been more wrong as the tales of being emperor of antiquities most revered society infused with such wisdom was fascinating

One person found this helpful

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Stuart Merryweather

Good book

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 10 May 2019

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

I haven’t read all of it yet but it’s an enlightening read so far. I stopped at Marcus Aurelius’s monument in Rome near the Pantheon and knew of him but never realised he was one of the most noteworthy stoics. For such a powerful and busy man he comes across as a deep thinker too.

One person found this helpful

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PJ Lloyd

Exceelent Book - Great For THose That Need A Little Guidance In Life

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 2 October 2018

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

This is a really old book! Written by Marcus Aurelius (from Gladiator The Movie fame!).

I recommend just to read a page or two per day, as it can be a little difficult to understand. A wide range of wise and interesting quotes and thoughts

The book has little structure as such. It is however, a wealth of personal reflection. The key thing is that Marcus would never have thought this book would be published, as it was written as his own journal and thoughts.

Highly recommended if you can handle the English that is written in!

2 people found this helpful

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