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Article DETACHED THOUGHTS. ← Page 2 of 4 →
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Detached Thoughts.
And what is every want , but pain already begun ? And what is it that want does not bring under subjection ? The free inhabitant of the air , born to range and wander in space uncontrolled and unfettered , obeys and descends at the voice of man ; he drops from the hi g hest summit on his wrist , in search of food ; overpowered by the violence of" his appetite , he is subjected to his will ; again he ascends the sk }* -, in obedience to the falconer ' s orders , who regulates his motions ; the commanding signal that man makes to the bird of prey , is obeyed through want , and the hunger which torments the winged
creature . Pain is a hideous spectre , that watches over our preservation . The whole human race wander with these two guides , Pain and Pleasure . But although so assiduous to enjoy pleasure , we are much more so to avoid pain . Consider a man in possession of every thing which can please the mind and senses ; the least hurt makes the charm vanish—Bring musicians offer amusements to a man in a fit of the
. ; cholic ; his sufferings will , probably , only increase . The clown , whose mind is little practised , bears up against pain , better than he who is civilised . The savage glories in setting it at defiance ; he bears , without shrinking , the most cruel torments ; he even laughs at his butchers . The Indian captive , bound to the stake at which he is to be , burned , collects his whole strength , and insults
the conqueror in his death song . Voluptuousness is found to sink a man a great deal more ; the fire of voluptuousness often melts , as in a destructive crucible , the finest genius , and happiest disposition . The love of pleasure stifles the greatest qualities ; the great man often sinks in the . arms of a courtesan ; she annihilates him who would of his fellow citizens
be the champion of the country or the luminary . Some great men , it is true , have roused themselves from the lethargy of p leasure , as the p hzenix is represented to us rising from its ashet ; but that rarely happens . Who can tell but those great men would have been more illustrious , more celebrated , more useful , if they had not paid so great a tribute to effeminacy ?
Pain is , therefore , less dangerous than the love of pleasure , which degenerates into libertinism , and has made too great progress ; for it extinguishes noble and manly virtues . An austere life is , then , more suitable to man than an effeminate one ; the first will enable him to bear pain ; courage and strength will support him ; the other will destroy him .
Seneca thus expresses himself in his energetic and lofty style : "It is true , virtue carries some austerity with it ; but it fortifies the mind . Voluptuousness is deceitful ; where will you find it ? In public places and taverns , & c . Where will you find the former ? In temples , the senate , and closets of great writers . "
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Detached Thoughts.
And what is every want , but pain already begun ? And what is it that want does not bring under subjection ? The free inhabitant of the air , born to range and wander in space uncontrolled and unfettered , obeys and descends at the voice of man ; he drops from the hi g hest summit on his wrist , in search of food ; overpowered by the violence of" his appetite , he is subjected to his will ; again he ascends the sk }* -, in obedience to the falconer ' s orders , who regulates his motions ; the commanding signal that man makes to the bird of prey , is obeyed through want , and the hunger which torments the winged
creature . Pain is a hideous spectre , that watches over our preservation . The whole human race wander with these two guides , Pain and Pleasure . But although so assiduous to enjoy pleasure , we are much more so to avoid pain . Consider a man in possession of every thing which can please the mind and senses ; the least hurt makes the charm vanish—Bring musicians offer amusements to a man in a fit of the
. ; cholic ; his sufferings will , probably , only increase . The clown , whose mind is little practised , bears up against pain , better than he who is civilised . The savage glories in setting it at defiance ; he bears , without shrinking , the most cruel torments ; he even laughs at his butchers . The Indian captive , bound to the stake at which he is to be , burned , collects his whole strength , and insults
the conqueror in his death song . Voluptuousness is found to sink a man a great deal more ; the fire of voluptuousness often melts , as in a destructive crucible , the finest genius , and happiest disposition . The love of pleasure stifles the greatest qualities ; the great man often sinks in the . arms of a courtesan ; she annihilates him who would of his fellow citizens
be the champion of the country or the luminary . Some great men , it is true , have roused themselves from the lethargy of p leasure , as the p hzenix is represented to us rising from its ashet ; but that rarely happens . Who can tell but those great men would have been more illustrious , more celebrated , more useful , if they had not paid so great a tribute to effeminacy ?
Pain is , therefore , less dangerous than the love of pleasure , which degenerates into libertinism , and has made too great progress ; for it extinguishes noble and manly virtues . An austere life is , then , more suitable to man than an effeminate one ; the first will enable him to bear pain ; courage and strength will support him ; the other will destroy him .
Seneca thus expresses himself in his energetic and lofty style : "It is true , virtue carries some austerity with it ; but it fortifies the mind . Voluptuousness is deceitful ; where will you find it ? In public places and taverns , & c . Where will you find the former ? In temples , the senate , and closets of great writers . "