“For it is impossible to gather up the results of continuous diligent study of the entirety of things, unless we can embrace in short formulas and hold in might all that might have been accurately expressed even to the minutest detail.”
The quote mentioned above is used to make reference to the main idea transmitted in the letter, namely that a person has to have the possibility to express a very complex idea in a very simple way which can be understood by everyone at the end of the day. This form of explaining complex ideas is important because not everyone has the capacity to understand extremely them and the narrator argues that everyone should have access to the truth, no matter their capacity and their status in life.
“Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for.”
Epicurus notes in his writings that everyone has the possibility to be happy and yet few reach a state of true happiness. Epicurus analyzes the reasons why many fail to find true meaning in life and concludes that unhappiness is the result of a person’s incapability to be happy with what they have in life and the tendency to always desire more. This constant state of dissatisfaction is what makes many to live an unhappy existence and never truly enjoy life.
"There is no such thing as justice in the abstract; it is merely a contract between men."
Through this quote, the narrator transmits one important idea: justice does not really exist but is something created by men to control those around them. Still, even though the concept of justice is not seen as coming from above, it is something which society needs to function properly and to ensure the safety of every person living during a period of time. Justice is seen as a contract in which every person has to give something in order to receive something. The author also goes further and claims that justice is the only thing that differentiates a being with superior mental capacities from an animal who relies only on instincts.
