About the
Marcus Aurelius
Lesson
Summary
This lesson is discusses the life and thoughts of Marcus Aurelius.
Lesson Objectives
• To be able to describe Stoic thought.
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To be able to identify Aurelius’ best friend and son.
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To be able to discuss Marcus Aurelius’ theories.
Suggested Grades
4th Grade
5th Grade
6th Grade
Lesson Excerpt
The Meditations is a short book that Aurelius wrote down ideas in regarding ethics, government, war, and philosophy. Aurelius wrote the book in Greek, and it is a famous book that many students study even in the present day. It has been translated into English and many other languages. The ideas that Aurelius presented had concepts that he shared with a group of thinkers called the Stoics. The Stoics believed that self-control was the most important aspect of happiness. They argued that freedom and good behavior would promote happiness for people. They also believed that living in accord with nature was the best way to have self-control. By this is meant that they thought everything was controlled by fate and humans were happiest when they did not try to behave in a way that goes against fate.
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