3 ms·
The first part of Book 3 in Marcus Aurelius' Meditations has this description of "dementia". ... If dementia sets in, there will be no failure of such facultie
by acadapter 3y ago
The first part of Book 3 in Marcus Aurelius' Meditations has this description of "dementia".
... If dementia sets in, there will be no failure of such faculties as breathing, feeding, imagination, desire: before these go, the earlier extinction is of one's proper use of oneself, one's accurate assessment of the gradations of duty, one's ability to analyse impressions, one's understanding of whether the time has come to leave this life - these and all other matters which wholly depend on trained calculation. So we must have a sense of urgency, not only for the ever closer approach of death, but also because our comprehension of the world and our ability to pay proper attention will fade before we do.