Skip to content
School of Stoics

Seneca Moral essays

Seneca: How few magistrates are there who ought not to…

How few magistrates are there who ought not to be condemned by the very same laws which they administer? How few prosecutors are themselves faultless? I imagine, also, that few men are less willing to grant pardon, than those who have often had to beg it for themselves.

The passage follows a public-domain translation of Seneca’s moral essays. The reading beside it is ours.

We are usually most severe about the faults we do not want to recognize in ourselves. The manager who resents being questioned may be hiding their own uncertainty. The public moralizer may be defending against private guilt. Seneca's warning is aimed at judges and prosecutors, but it belongs anywhere people get to evaluate others. Before you deliver a verdict, remember the times you needed patience, another chance, or a more generous reading of your intentions. This is not a reason to ignore harm or pretend every complaint is hypocrisy. It is a discipline of humility. You can hold someone accountable without enjoying your moral elevation over them. Ask yourself: would I want this standard applied to me in my worst, least articulate moment? If the answer is no, revise the standard. Fairness begins when we stop treating our own flaws as context and everyone else's as character.

Justice Wisdom Temperance Perspective Anger Shame

Related passages