Remedy for the Monstrous Conflict
There are such extremes of remedy in Piso's and Seneca's points
of view. I have often thought that there must be something better
than Seneca's blindness to his own philosophy and Piso's having the
three men killed. Of the two, however, it is the latter that I would have to
say is clearly the better. Yet, while I cannot propose some better remedy
for the situation in the story, were I to be put in a situation in which such
events could develop, I would be sure at the outset that everyone knew
three things. 1) the story as Seneca told it, 2) that, while I was open
to a better remedy than Piso's, I had not thought of one yet, and 3) that,
if everyone would remember and remind others what it is that we are
required to do, we would not be losing our heads unnecessarily.There is a remedy that is suggested by a reading of Laus Pisonis
in which a Calpurnius Piso (thought by some to be one Gaius Calpurnius
Piso) is lauded, among other things, for his skill at persuading a judge
to his point of view. "It is from you that a judge gets an anger not
his own," the author writes. If Gnaeus Calpurnius Piso had addressed
the throng of soldiers with such skill, he might have persuaded them
of the guilt of the two comrades and the centurion with regard to the
serious offense of having disobeyed orders vital to the well-being of
the entire contingent. Once all were convinced of the guilt of the three,
everyone in the company would see that he had also made a serious
error in judgment by failing to recognize that guilt and the danger that
the unchecked infractions would have brought about. From there it
would be a matter of repentance and a question of clemency, which
would restore Fortune and virtue to their proper places in the thinking
of the company.If you have any comments concerning remedy with regards to the
Piso story, I would be glad to have them. e-mail address: hailmaryshelley(at symbol)yahoo.com