Amongst all insights gained by Seneca, his recipe for handling pessimism is particularly remarkable. I find it perennial in its validity and universal in its applications. Few philosophers have analysed this issue as profoundly as Seneca, and even fewer have come up with useful recommendations. I can sum up Seneca’s recipe for handling pessimism in one brief metaphor. Instead of adopting a fearful, worrisome view of the world, we should imitate the insouciance of dogs, cats or any other wild species. On good and bad days, they keep walking around, looking for food. They fail in most of their attempts to chase a prey or obtain food, but they keep trying nonetheless. Even when they succeed, they seldom get their favourite food, but they enjoy it anyway. Last but not least, when things turn for the worse, they look for solutions without exaggerating the problem. Their attention and capabilities are focused on addressing the problem at hand, leaving no time for blowing up future risks out of proportion. Seneca did not employ the metaphor of animal insouciance, but his Letters to Lucilius provide advice that corresponds one hundred per cent to this metaphor. I am referring in particular to the 49th, the 92nd and the 24th Letters. In the 49th Letter to Lucilius, Seneca addresses the question of how to face adversity. Life is full of crises, some of them heavier than others. When Seneca wrote the 49th Letter, he was surrounded by war and violence, fearing for his own safety. Even in the worst circumstances, it pays to keep going and making the best of each day, Seneca concludes. “Some people live a long life, but they waste most of their time,” he notes. It’s up to us to seize the available opportunities each day without wasting time with complaints. Thus, my metaphor for dogs and cats, or wild animals. Seneca considers a pure time waste to engage in pessimistic thinking. In his own situation, amidst bitter military hostilities, he could spend the whole day agonizing over the risk that “this might be the last day of my life.” Such a pessimistic attitude is useless and counterproductive. We should rather imitate cats and dogs in their ability to stay relatively insouciant in times of trouble. They keep going each day, not wasting time agonizing over potential risks. Seneca complements this important insight in the 49th Letter to Lucilius, where he reminds us of the human ability to deal with adversity. I would call it a formula for attaining happiness to the maximum extent possible. The philosopher knows how to deal with negative elements and make the best of each day. In the original Latin text, Seneca is referring to any material setback, external or internal. For instance, he is talking about health problems as much as material poverty. I have translated this concept by “negative elements beyond his control.” In my metaphor, I refer to the animals’ contentment in cases where they do not find their favourite type of food. This covers the great majority of cases. Nonetheless, they are happy to eat whatever is available and call it a day. We should not grow pessimistic by the fact that we have not yet achieved our goals, or due to the uncertainty of ever getting to our desired destination, argues Seneca. In the 92nd Letter to Lucilius, Seneca affirmed that we can deal successfully with anger. It has taught me that our soul enables us to deal with negative issues and elevate us above a purely perceptual level. In this area, we are far better equipped than dogs, cats or any other creature. Seneca emphasises the need to maintain our equanimity and keep pessimism at bay. In this respect, I must mention Publius Rufus Rutilius (2nd century BC) as an illustration of the human ability to deal with setbacks and still find happiness. Rutilius was twice prosecuted on dubious ground, absolved the first time, but the second time sent into exile. Here is the link to the original article: https://johnvespasian.com/seneca-on-handling-pessimism/