Why Do Bad Things Happen To Good People? According to the Stoics: They Don't.

Exploring Seneca's timeless wisdom on how to thrive amidst adversity and misfortune.

“Why me?”

I’m sure we’ve all uttered those words at least once within our lives. As human beings, it’s virtually impossible to go through life without witnessing firsthand just how unfair the world can be.

Occasionally, things happen to us, or those around us, that just don't make sense. Someone might be incredibly moral, helpful, kind, forgiving, and overall just a good person, but this still doesn’t shield them from bad or unfortunate things happening to them. The reverse is also true; sometimes ‘bad’, evil, or immoral people seem to be rewarded by life. They might have incredible luck, or they might easily attain wealth, power, and various pleasures. I’m sure we’ve all experienced things that have made us doubt the concept of Karma - things that just don’t make moral or rational sense.

So, how is one supposed to cope with this? How are good people supposed to deal with constantly being dealt a ‘bad hand’ and having to face many instances of adversity?

Enter Seneca.

Seneca was an ancient Stoic philosopher hailing from the Roman Empire. Along with Marcus Aurelius, Epictetus, and Zeno of Citium, he’s regarded as one of the most influential philosophers to ever contribute to Stoicism. This actually isn’t my first time covering his work on The Philosophy of Things, as I wrote an essay about his approach towards anger back in January.

In today’s essay, we’ll be examining Seneca’s philosophy regarding adversity, misfortune, and how he recommended we deal with these inevitable parts of life. Specifically, we’ll be exploring his text De Providentia (On Providence), which is an essay that investigates the following philosophical problem; why do bad things happen to good people? If you’re interested in Stoicism, you’ll be in for a real treat; I personally find On Providence to be an exemplary reflection of Stoic thought, and it’s one of my favorite works from Seneca.

Seneca begins his essay by addressing a foundational question which will guide the rest of the piece; why do bad things happen to good people? He’s been asked this question by one of his friends, Lucilius, who’s been having a hard time reconciling the idea of providence with the problem of evil.

Providence is essentially the idea or belief that the ‘guiding force’ of the universe is orderly and rational. The term providence can be defined in many ways, with definitions usually containing religious or agnostic themes. For someone who’s religious or views the world through a theistic lens, providence may refer to God’s intervention, governance, and presence throughout the universe, which is expressed through forms of order and rationality. For example, the idea of God punishing ‘bad’ people and rewarding ‘good’ people is an example of providence, as it is a form of order and rationality in a universe which doesn’t necessarily have to have any order to begin with. From an agnostic, or a lesser-religious perspective, providence may refer to an underlying ‘force’ which is present everywhere, and which creates order and rationality within a universe that technically shouldn’t have to follow any rules in the first place. The existence of mathematical patterns or cyclical events may be an agnostic version of providence. To put it simply; providence is the presence of order and some sort of underlying governance within a universe which theoretically could be chaotic and ruleless.

For the Stoics, especially the way Seneca thought of the concept, providence refers to the idea that the universe has some sort of natural order, and that the organizing principle behind the entire universe is connected to divine reason (logos) and is guiding everything towards a ‘best possible state’. Seneca’s friend, Lucilius, had trouble reconciling the Stoic idea of providence with the philosophical problem of evil, which refers to the conflicting presence of evil within a world that’s supposedly governed by divine reason, order, and a higher power. To put it simply, Lucilius was confused by the following; if the universe is not inherently ‘ruleless’ and is instead ruled by a rational, organizing principle which is connected to reason and order (as the Stoics believed), then why does evil exist in the world? If the universe is ruled by divine reason (logos), or God, which always strives for ‘goodness’ and the ‘best possible state’, then why do bad things happen to good people?

Seneca’s Response to Lucilius’ Question

Within the intro of his essay, one of the first things that Seneca does is establish the fact that nothing in the world happens without reason. From Seneca’s point of view, even some of the most unexplainable things, such as natural disasters, all happen with some sort of underlying reason. He’s communicating a fundamental Stoic belief here, as he asserts that everything within the universe is ‘governed by eternal law’.

“Why do many things turn out badly for good men? Why, no evil can befall a good man; contraries cannot combine.” — On Providence, Section 1

A key point within Seneca’s essay is the idea that opposites can’t combine. Therefore, it’s not really possible for ‘bad’ things to happen to ‘good’ people. Within section II of the text, Seneca asserts that when something which we perceive to be ‘bad’ happens to a good person, it’s actually not ‘bad’ at all. This is because adversity, and negative events, actually result in the betterment and strengthening of ‘good’ people. According to Seneca, adversity makes good people better than they were before, and anyone who becomes evil or stops being a good person simply due to hardship, wasn’t truly ‘good’ to begin with.

“Just as so many rivers, so many showers of rain from the clouds… do not alter the taste of the sea… the pressure of adversity does not affect the mind of a brave man; for the mind of a brave man maintains its balance and throws its own complexion over all that takes place, because it is more powerful than any external circumstances. I do not say that he does not feel them, but he conquers them, and on occasion calmly and tranquilly rises superior to their attacks, holding all misfortunes to be trials of his own firmness.” — On Providence, Section 5

Seneca uses athletes as an example. He states that, when athletes want to get better, they seek out adversity and discomfort. They seek out opponents who are better and stronger than them, and they want these opponents to use their full strength and effort against them. After all, nothing pisses off an athlete more than an opponent who doesn’t try when competing. Seneca highlights the fact that athletes commonly seek out and endure ‘blows and maltreatment’ in order to ‘prove how great and mighty’ they are. This is because they can only prove their might, and improve their skill set, by demonstrating and testing how much they can endure. Similarly, when good people are faced with adversity, it’s not actually a ‘bad’ thing as it makes them better people (more ‘good’) in the long run. Adversity and negative circumstances don’t threaten or punish someone’s ‘goodness’, instead, they actually strengthen it.

“You should know that good men ought to act in like manner, so as not to fear troubles and difficulties, nor to lament their hard fate, to take in good part whatever befalls them, and force it to become a blessing to them. It does not matter what you bear, but how you bear it.” — On Providence, Section 4

Seneca also highlights the importance of trials and tribulations. Within section three of the essay, he quotes a beautiful remark from Demetrius; “No one seems to me more unhappy than the man whom misfortune has ever befallen. He never has had an opportunity of testing himself; though everything has happened to him according to his wish, nay, even before he has formed a wish, yet the gods have judged him unfavorably; he has never been deemed worthy to conquer ill fortune, which avoids the greatest cowards.”

Within this section, Seneca draws attention to the fact that the instances of misfortune and adversity which we frequently categorize as being ‘bad’ are actually the very things which allow someone to be ‘good’ in the first place. For example, think of anyone who you consider to be a good person. You might regard them as being good because they’re moral, kind, forgiving, brave, etc. Why do you consider someone to be moral? It’s probably because they’ve acted morally in a situation where it would have been easier to be immoral. Additionally, it may have been a situation where most people would have acted immorally. The same goes for every other quality which we attribute to ‘good’ people; they’re kind when most people probably would’ve been unkind, they’re forgiving when it would’ve been easier to be unforgiving, etc. Claiming to be a good person without having ever demonstrated your goodness in ‘bad’ circumstances is no different than winning an Olympic competition with no one else competing. In Seneca’s words; you have the crown, but not the victory.

“You are a great man; but how am I to know it, if fortune gives you no opportunity of showing your virtue? You have entered the arena of the Olympic games, but no one else has done so: you have the crown, but not the victory: I do not congratulate you as I would a brave man” — On Providence, Section 3

From this point of view, negative circumstances are the very thing which allow people to be good in the first place. Hardship is to a good person what competitors are to an athlete. Seneca advises us not to dread misfortune or adversity, but instead to welcome it. He states that “misfortune is virtue's opportunity.”

“A gladiator deems it a disgrace to be matched with an inferior, and knows that to win without danger is to win without glory.” — On Providence, Section 2

“For a man cannot know himself without a trial; no one ever learnt what he could do without putting himself to the test; for which reason many have of their own free will exposed themselves to misfortunes which no longer came in their way, and have sought for an opportunity of making their virtue, which otherwise would have been lost in darkness, shine before the world.” — On Providence, Section 4

Seneca then goes on to address the topic of unhappiness in relation to these ‘bad’ situations. From a surface-level perspective, it may seem like adversity causes good people to be unhappy, but this isn’t always the case. In perfect Stoic fashion, Seneca asserts that it’s actually impossible for genuinely good people to receive long-term unhappiness from misfortune. This is because good people derive most of their happiness from goodness itself, and therefore the very act of being ‘good’ in the face of evil is enough to produce happiness. Allow me to explain.

For genuinely ‘good’ people, the decision to not act virtuously when faced with evil inflicts more harm (and unhappiness) upon them than any harm that the evil could cause in the first place. Seneca uses Socrates as an example to illustrate this point. Although Socrates was condemned to a terrible and evil fate (he was forced to drink poison), the act of cowering away and not standing up for philosophy would’ve brought him more harm than drinking the poison itself. For Socrates, the act of standing up for the truth and for what was right provided him with more fulfillment and happiness than the act of continuing to live on as someone who gave into evil and acted unvirtuously. Seneca takes this one step further and states that Socrates was arguably even happier than the elites who sentenced him to death, as he got to attain true fulfillment from being a good person, whereas those who killed him, despite being wealthy, powerful, and having access to endless pleasures, never got to experience true happiness or fulfillment.

“Such men as these bring up again all that they drink, in misery and disgust at the taste of their own bile, while Socrates cheerfully and willingly drains his poison.”

— On Providence, Section 5

Near the end of his essay, Seneca revisits the original question which set this whole thing off; why does the universe, which is supposedly rational, orderly, and ruled by the good, place virtuous people in bad situations?

Seneca goes on to explain that the universe places good people in tough situations because it cares about them and wants to give them the gift of betterment. This may sound counterintuitive, but he uses the ‘tough love’ style of parenting as an example. Do parents who allow their children to struggle a bit, and perhaps be tested by life’s adversity by themselves, not love them? The obvious answer is no, and the truth is actually the opposite. Parents allow their children to deal with certain forms of adversity on their own because they love and care about them, and want them to be strong individuals. They may encourage their children to ‘figure things out’ by themselves because they want to give them the ability to effectively handle life’s challenges. Similarly, the universe gives good people adversity, misfortune, and tough circumstances because it wants to better them. On the contrary, ‘bad’ or unvirtuous people may be given good fortune and may never have to face adversity, but this doesn’t actually make them better people. In the long run, it doesn’t provide them with any growth, and therefore harms them. Bad people aren’t ‘rewarded’ by life, instead, they’re actually just harmed in the long-term as they’re starved of opportunities to grow and become stronger, better individuals.

“No tree which the wind does not often blow against is firm and strong; for it is stiffened by the very act of being shaken, and plants its roots more securely: those which grow in a sheltered valley are brittle” — On Providence, Section 4

Within the very last section of On Providence, Seneca reiterates another idea from the start of the essay; opposites cannot combine, and therefore only good things can happen to good people, and bad things to bad people. The universe only bestows ‘good’ upon good people, hence why misfortune and adversity result in the betterment of the person. Unvirtuous people who seemingly look like they’ve been ‘rewarded’ by life haven’t actually been awarded anything, as they’ll never have the chance to prove their ‘greatness’ or ‘goodness’, and will also be kept from any opportunities to grow. In the long-term, this is actually a punishment, rather than being a reward. Although unvirtuous people may appear rich, powerful, and fulfilled, this is actually far from the truth. Due to them not being genuinely good individuals, all of these things are mere ‘veneers’ which mask the hollow and unhappy souls which lie underneath.

“Conceive, therefore, that God says:—"You, who have chosen righteousness, what complaint can you make of me? I have encompassed other men with unreal good things, and have deceived their inane minds as it were by a long and misleading dream: I have bedecked them with gold, silver, and ivory, but within them there is no good thing. Those men whom you regard as fortunate, if you could see, not their outward show, but their hidden life, are really unhappy, mean, and base, ornamented on the outside like the walls of their houses: that good fortune of theirs is not sound and genuine: it is only a veneer, and that a thin one.”

— On Providence, Section 5

No adversity equates to zero growth, and unvirtuous people will therefore never attain true development, fulfillment, or happiness. Adversity, from this perspective, is reserved for the greatest and best of people; those who are worthy of benefiting from it.

As always, I hope you enjoyed today’s essay. All the best!

“Fire tries gold, misfortune tries brave men. See how high virtue has to climb: you may be sure that it has no safe path to tread.” — Seneca