Book 5, Letter 21 - Aristotle

 

Dear Cicero,

It's been a long year already, and it's gonna be a longer night. It took me a while, but I fell in love with Aristotle, and having spent more than a few midnights with him, I have written a poem which I hope you will appreciate. I began with his book on Rhetoric, and tonight I have begun reading his work on Poetics. I was daunted at first by his reputation, but underneath that, of course, lay the man and his ideas and his genius.

So, this is the 21st letter of Book 5 of this collection, and so I will take a short break over Autumn before I begin Book 6. The first letter (of book 6) contains a video of a young friend of mine, a scholar of both Law and History, who will read a section of one of your speeches against Catiline, but he will read to you in the original Latin.

But that is for another night.

Tonight is dedicated to our mutual love of Aristotle.

with Admiration and Respect,

Morgan 

 

 

Book 5, Letter 20 - Tacitus on Cicero,

 

Dear Cicero,

I keep finding fans of your work from among the writers of my acquaintance. Tacitus was only a hundred or so years after your death, and his description of you, and of your legendary status among orators, reads like a fan letter, as if he too hoped that your ghost might be listening. Soon I will read to you from the letters to Pliny the younger, who was a friend of Tacitus, and who likewise praises your skills as a speaker and writer. It seems that I am far from alone in using you as an example to follow in my journey as a writer and speaker.

Here in the 21st Century, another war has flared up, potentially the ignition point for a global conflict that may define the coming generation. I remind myself that the future is unwritten. The past is not a mirror. I remember each day the words of a wise poet friend...

"I surrender to the whole catastrophe..." Amy Bodossian.

With gratitude and respect.

Morgan.

 

 

Book 5, Letter 19 - Michaelangelo

Dear Cicero,

There's something timeless about love poetry. It invites us to imagine something beyond ourselves, to see the magic possible in a romantic connection, and to transform even the agony of loss and heartbreak, into something beautiful.

I didn't know Michaelangelo wrote poetry until I found this book, and the quality of his words have been a source of continual inspiration ever since.

With gratitude and respect,

Morgan

 

 

 

Book 5, Letter 18 - Herodotus

 

Dear Cicero,

I met Herodotus around the same time I met you, in a little bookstore in the central markets, and over the past four or so years, his book has remained on my bedside table (first one translation, then another, then a third). From his stories of the Scythians, to the origins of money, dice games and even the roots of the east/west divide, Herodotus has inspired my imagination and sent me on many more literary adventures than I could easily recount.

Tonight I just wanted to read to you from his account of the wild beasts of Libya and beyond, in my mind it's a real, 'lions and tigers and bears, oh my!', kind of moment. Because the study of history is not always serious.

With Gratitude and Respect,

Morgan.

 

 

Book 5, Letter 17 - Cicero - On Torture

 

Dear Cicero,

Aristotle had something to say on this subject, and I read to you today on the same topic, simply as a comparison, since it seems obvious to me that whoever wrote Rhetorica ad Herennium, was likely quite familiar with Aristotle's earlier work. The problems of coercion, and the unreliable results obtained when force is used on people is not a subject irrelevant to our modern times, and while I wish to make no further aspersions regarding the problems of my era, I will leave it up to you to consider the wisdom contained within this textbook.

With gratitude and respect,

Morgan.

 

 

Book 5, Letter 16 - Louisa May Alcott - Work

Dear Cicero,

To say that you are still an influential man in the world is an understatement closer to an insult than it is to a compliment. The authors, speakers, lawyers, politicians, historians and history buffs who have devoted their lives to studying your work is a society spanning centuries and continents. Louisa Alcott, most famous for her book "Little Women", wrote so much more than that beautiful story, and her dedication to perfecting the delivery of ideas through speech and writing was revealed to me over and over as I read her later book, "Work".

It is the story of a working woman, and I will not summarise the tale for you here, but to say that the segment I read to you tonight contains some beautiful sentiments on oratory that I knew you would appreciate.

The need for good speakers, for clear thinkers, for persuasive argument, will never die.

Thank you, with gratitude and respect,

Morgan

 

Book 5, Letter 15 - Cicero, On Old Age

 

Dear Cicero,

I am not yet old, neither am I young, and this bridging age which may yet last a decade or more, gives me pause to consider the span of years remaining to me, and to ask questions. I am old enough now to admit my ignorance in all things, and young enough to still be driven by mad passions, some of which are beneficial, some of which are little short of self harm.

There is a lot of my life yet to live, (I hope), and with those years I intend to read many thousands of books, to sing songs, write poems, and write my own books. This year will finally see the publication of my first book, a tiny illustrated volume called "My Goblin Therapist". My ambitions are important to me, and I sense that there will never be enough time to see them all realised, and yet at the same time, I am developing a sense of my limits. I am sensing what is within my grasp to achieve, and working every day to achieve those goals I have set myself.

How many years do I have left? I am forty two (next month), so I hope for another 38 years of life. Yet, as you say Cicero, would even another eighty years satisfy me?

Satisfaction. Is it a choice? Is it the reward of hard work? How much life is enough life? Can anything that has an end be said to be long?

I'll have an answer for you one day Cicero, but don't hold your breath.

With gratitude and respect

Morgan.