Khamryn Stansell
October 23, 2018
Happiness and Meaning of Life
Section 2
Word Count: 759
The Depths of Anger: Aristotle vs Seneca
Everyday humans are faced with many emotions. Some are easier to control than others. Out of
the various emotions that we continuously feel, there is only one that can’t be hidden. Most of
your emotions can be covered or faked but anger is the only emotion that will always reveal
itself no matter the situation. This makes anger one of the most complex and intriguing emotions
to study. There are two important philosopher, Aristotle and Seneca, that both have an opinion
on how we should deal with anger and why it is important to be conscious of it.
In the chapters given in class to read, it is expressed that Aristotle believes that since anger is a
primary emotion it can be dealt with in moderation. He states that it is okay to be angry but the
actions that come while your angry says alot about you as a person. In Nicomachean Ethics,
Aristotle wrote "The man who is angry at the right things and with the right people, and, further,
as he ought, when he ought, and as long as he ought, is praised." This explains that although
anger is necessary and a natural emotion, in order for you to act in anger it must be done at the
right time, with the right person, and only for the right amount of time.
It is then discussed in A Selection from On Anger Seneca’s perspective on anger. Seneca had a
very logical outlook on how we as people should interact with anger when it is present. He
believed that although anger is a natural emotion and we have no control on how we experience
it, we can control what we do with the feeling. He expressed that we should be able to feel anger
but not act upon it. We must make the executive decisions to not act out in anger because “once
passion has been admitted to the mind, and has by our own free will been given a certain
authority, it will for the future do as much as it chooses, not only as much as you will allow it.”
Which illustrates that actions done out of anger aren’t actions that can be taken b...
