Was Greek and Roman Philosophical Consolation Therapy for Disordered Grief? An Ancient Tradition in Modern Light

summary: This article revisits the tradition of Greek and Latin consolatory writing. While much of this literature can be understood in relation to an underlying social act of sympathy or condolence giving, I argue that a subset of such writings, "philosophical consolation," had the special purpose of addressing and treating grief that was recognized as abnormal or disordered by Greco-Roman cultural norms. In this way, philosophical consolation anticipates modern approaches to disordered grief.