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Marcus Aurelius

By: Donald J. Robertson
Narrated by: Donald J. Robertson
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Publisher's summary

Experience the world of Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius and the tremendous challenges he faced and overcame with the help of Stoic philosophy

This novel biography brings Marcus Aurelius (121-180 CE) to life for a new generation by exploring the emperor’s fascinating psychological journey. Donald J. Robertson examines Marcus’s relationships with key figures in his life, such as his mother, Domitia Lucilla, and the emperor Hadrian, as well as his Stoic tutors. He draws extensively on Marcus’s own Meditations and correspondence, and he examines the emperor’s actions as detailed in the Augustan History and other ancient texts.

Marcus Aurelius struggled to reconcile his philosophy and moral values with the political pressures he faced as emperor at the height of Roman power. Robertson examines Marcus’s attitude toward slavery and the moral dilemma posed by capturing enemies in warfare; his attitude toward women; the role of Stoicism in shaping his response to the threat of civil war; the treatment of Christians under his rule; and the naming of his notorious son Commodus as his successor.

Throughout, the Meditations is used to shed light on the mind of the emperor—his character, values, and motives—as Robertson skillfully weaves together Marcus’s inner journey as a philosopher with the outer events of his life as a Roman emperor.

©2024 Donald J. Robertson (P)2024 Yale University Press
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What listeners say about Marcus Aurelius

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insightful

A must read for those who want to understand the backstory as "The Meditations" was being written

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Experience The Life of The Man

As good as it gets. I’m understanding the man as he was created, and how he created himself. A wonderful story of an incredible human being in a raw violent time.

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Worth every minute!

Worth your time!
I listened to this audio book 3x.
Well written.
Solid research.
Educational.
Entertaining.
50% history of Roman Empire.
The other 50% philosophy. and application to MA’s life.
More history than “Think like a Roman Emperor”.
Author reads his book and does a good job.
I also bought the book.
If you like philosophy and Roman history then get this audio book.

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A must read for anyone interested in history of Roman Empire during Marcus Aurelius

This audio book was an absolute gem to listen to as it was narrated by author himself. It was written as a literary novel rather than a historical book, it is more a historical fiction i a sense that a lot of the actual events were quoted from different sources and sometimes they were contradictory so the author was left of creating a narrative based on many sources and filling in gaps with creative analysis.

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Robertson does it again

Another excellent bio of the philosopher king from Robertson. Digs into all the details we have of Marcus Aurelius's life and presents them in a very personal and entertaining way. I've studied MA a lot, yet I still learned many things about his life and times. Highly recommended!

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Arete

An excellent work... well researched, well written, and well read by the author. I encourage all to dive in.

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A thoughtful and heartfelt biography of Marcus Aurelius

First of all, you can’t go wrong with Robertson’s narration. Soothing tone that is a pleasure to listen too. I feel the book builds well off his previous work Think like a Roman Emperor. I it is well researched and the author weaves an excellent narrative with the the information. An outstanding read!

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the epiliogue

my heart cries out in happiness knowing a man such as this can and did exist...tho now I gotta look into the hall of mysteries...

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Better understanding of who he really was

Getting the history on his life with the historical background was enjoyable. I’ve read some other books that focused more on the Stoicism and not on the Man so this was a delight.

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Great Narration

Another damn good book on Stoicism by Donald Robertson. His books are a balm for a troubled spirit.

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