Letters 69.4

at every turn they will notice before their eyes an object worth their attention. There is no evil that does not offer inducements. Avarice promises money; luxury, a varied assortment of pleasures; ambition, a purple robe and applause, and the influence which results from applause, and all that influence can do.

Seneca, Letters to Lucilius 69.4, translated by Richard Mott Gummere