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Literary
November 7, 1805
Rhode Island Republican
Newport, Newport County, Rhode Island
What is this article about?
Essay on the virtues of a tranquil life, contrasting it with the dangers of sensual pleasures like waste, brutality, and disease. Includes Plutarch's anecdote of General Timotheus rebuking a rash officer for needless exposure to danger.
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OCR Quality
96%
Excellent
Full Text
On a tranquil Life.
A calm and tranquil life renders the indulgence of sensual pleasures less dangerous. The theatre of sensuality exhibits scenes of waste and brutality, of noisy mirth and tumultuous riot; presents to observation pernicious goblets, overloaded tables, lascivious dancing, receptacles for disease, tombs with faded roses, and all the dismal haunts of pain. But to him who retires with detestation from such gross delights, the joys of sense are of a more elevated kind; soft, sublime, pure, permanent, and tranquil.
It was not customary for the commanders of antiquity to expose their persons needlessly as appears from an anecdote, preserved by Plutarch. A rash officer showing his wounds with exultation to Timotheus, he said, "When I was your General against Samians, I should have been ashamed if an arrow from a catapulta had fallen near me."
*The catapulta are military engines which threw very large arrows to a great distance.
A calm and tranquil life renders the indulgence of sensual pleasures less dangerous. The theatre of sensuality exhibits scenes of waste and brutality, of noisy mirth and tumultuous riot; presents to observation pernicious goblets, overloaded tables, lascivious dancing, receptacles for disease, tombs with faded roses, and all the dismal haunts of pain. But to him who retires with detestation from such gross delights, the joys of sense are of a more elevated kind; soft, sublime, pure, permanent, and tranquil.
It was not customary for the commanders of antiquity to expose their persons needlessly as appears from an anecdote, preserved by Plutarch. A rash officer showing his wounds with exultation to Timotheus, he said, "When I was your General against Samians, I should have been ashamed if an arrow from a catapulta had fallen near me."
*The catapulta are military engines which threw very large arrows to a great distance.
What sub-type of article is it?
Essay
What themes does it cover?
Moral Virtue
Temperance
What keywords are associated?
Tranquil Life
Sensual Pleasures
Plutarch
Timotheus
Catapulta
Antiquity Commanders
Literary Details
Title
On A Tranquil Life.
Key Lines
A Calm And Tranquil Life Renders The Indulgence Of Sensual Pleasures Less Dangerous.
The Theatre Of Sensuality Exhibits Scenes Of Waste And Brutality, Of Noisy Mirth And Tumultuous Riot; Presents To Observation Pernicious Goblets, Overloaded Tables, Lascivious Dancing, Receptacles For Disease, Tombs With Faded Roses, And All The Dismal Haunts Of Pain.
When I Was Your General Against Samians, I Should Have Been Ashamed If An Arrow From A Catapulta Had Fallen Near Me.