Stoicism is a school of Hellenistic philosophy, founded by Zeno
of Citium (333 BCE - 264 BCE) in Athens, and which became popular throughout
Greece and the Roman Empire.
Stoicism teaches that self-control, fortitude and
detachment from distracting emotions, sometimes interpreted as an indifference
to pleasure or pain, allows one to become a clear thinker, level-headed and
unbiased. A primary aspect of
Stoicism would be described as improving the individual’s spiritual well-being.
Virtue, reason, and natural law are prime directives. By mastering passions
and emotions, Stoics believe it is possible to overcome the discord of the
outside world and find peace within oneself. Stoicism holds that passion
distorts truth, and that the pursuit of truth is virtuous. Greek
philosophers such as Cleanthes, Chrysippus, and later Roman thinkers such as
Cicero, Seneca the Younger, Marcus Aurelius, Cato the Younger, Dio Chrysostom,
and Epictetus are associated with Stoicism. Stoic philosophy is usually
contrasted with Epicureanism. Stoicism became the foremost popular
philosophy among the educated elite in the Greco-Roman Empire, to the point
where nearly all the successors of Alexander professed themselves Stoics.
Zeno of Citium
Stoicism first appeared in Athens in the Hellenistic period around 301 BC
and was introduced by Zeno of Citium. He taught in the famous stoa
poikile (the painted porch) from which his philosophy got its name. Central to
his teachings was the law of morality being the same as nature. During its
initial phase, Stoicism was generally seen as a back-to-nature movement
critical of superstitions and taboos. The philosophical detachment also
encompassed pain and misfortune, good or bad experiences, as well as life or
death. Zeno often challenged prohibitions, traditions and customs. Another
tenet was the emphasis placed on love for all other beings. His ideas
developed from those of the Cynics, whose founding father, Antisthenes, had
been a disciple of Socrates. Zeno's most influential follower was Chrysippus,
who was responsible for the molding of what we now call Stoicism.
The Stoics provided a unified account of the world, consisting of formal
logic, materialistic physics and naturalistic ethics. Of these, they
emphasized ethics as the main focus of human knowledge, though their
logical theories were to be of more interest for many later philosophers. Later
Roman Stoics focused on promoting a life in harmony within the universe, over
which one has no direct control.
The ancient Stoics are often misunderstood because the terms they used
pertained to different concepts in the past than they do today. The word stoic
has come to mean unemotional or indifferent to pain, because Stoic
ethics taught freedom from passion by following reason. But the
Stoics did not seek to extinguish emotions, only to avoid emotional troubles by
developing clear judgment and inner calm through diligent practice of logic,
reflection, and concentration.
Borrowing from the Cynics, the foundation of Stoic ethics is that good
lies in the state of the soul itself; in wisdom and self-control. Stoic
ethics stressed the rule: "Follow where reason leads." One
must therefore strive to be free of the passions, bearing in mind that the
ancient meaning of passion was "anguish" or
"suffering", that is, "passively" reacting to external
events—somewhat different to the modern use of the word. A distinction was made
between pathos (plural patheia) which is normally translated as
"passion", propathos or instinctive reaction (e.g. turning
pale and trembling when confronted by physical danger) and eupathos,
which is the mark of the Stoic sage (sophos). The eupatheia
are feelings resulting from correct judgment in the same way as the passions
result from incorrect judgment.
The idea was to be free of suffering (which the Stoics
called passion) through apatheia
(απαθεια) (Greek) or apathy, where
apathy was understood in the ancient sense—being objective or having
"clear judgment"—rather than simple indifference, as apathy implies
today. The Stoic concepts of passion
and apatheia may be considered as analogous to the Buddhist noble
truths; All life has suffering (Dukkha), suffering is rooted in passion and
desire (Samudaya), meditation and virtue can free one from suffering (Nirodha
and Marga). It is also analogous to the concepts in Bhagavad Gita, a Hindu scripture,
which stresses rising above the dualities such as pleasure-pain, win-lose, to
perform one's duties.
For the Stoics, reason meant not only using logic,
but also understanding the processes of nature—the logos, or universal reason,
inherent in all things. Living according to reason and virtue, they held, is to
live in harmony with the divine order of the universe, in recognition of the
common reason and essential value of all people. The four cardinal virtues of
the Stoic philosophy are wisdom (Sophia), courage (Andreia), justice
(Dikaiosyne), and temperance (Sophrosyne), a classification derived from the teachings of Plato.
Following Socrates, the Stoics held that unhappiness and evil are the
results of ignorance. If someone is unkind, it is because they are unaware
of their own universal reason. Likewise, if they are unhappy, it is because
they have forgotten how nature actually functions. The solution to evil and
unhappiness then, is the practice of Stoic philosophy—to examine one's own
judgements and behaviour and determine where they have diverged from the
universal reason of nature.
Marcus Aurelius
Philosophy for a Stoic is not just a set of beliefs or
ethical claims; it is a way of life involving constant practice and training. Stoic philosophical and spiritual practices included
logic, Socratic dialogue and self-dialogue, contemplation of death, training
attention to remain in the present moment (similar to some forms of Eastern
meditation), daily reflection on everyday problems & possible solutions,
and so on. Philosophy for a Stoic is an active process of constant practice and
self-reminder. In Meditations, Marcus Aurelius (121 - 180 CE) defines
several such practices. For example, in Book II, part 1:
"Say to yourself in the early morning: I shall meet
today ungrateful, violent, treacherous, envious, uncharitable men. All of these
things have come upon them through ignorance of real good and ill... I can
neither be harmed by any of them, for no man will involve me in wrong, nor can
I be angry with my kinsman or hate him; for we have come into the world to work
together..."
A distinctive feature of Stoicism is its cosmopolitanism.
All people are manifestations of the one universal spirit and should, according
to the Stoics, live in brotherly love and readily help one another. In Discourses, Epictetus comments on man's
relationship with the world: "Each human being is primarily a citizen
of his own commonwealth; but he is also a member of the great city of gods and
men, whereof the city political is only a copy."
They held that external differences such as rank and wealth
are of no importance in social relationships. Thus, before the rise of
Christianity, Stoics recognized and advocated the brotherhood of humanity and
the natural equality of all human beings. Stoicism became the most influential school of the
Graeco–Roman world, and produced a number of remarkable writers and
personalities, such as Cato the Younger (95 BCE–46 BCE) and Epictetus. In
particular, they were noted for their urging of clemency toward slaves. Seneca
exhorted, "Kindly remember that he whom you call your slave sprang from
the same stock, is smiled upon by the same skies, and on equal terms with
yourself breathes, lives, and dies."
Below is a selection of quotations by major stoic philosophers illustrating major stoic beliefs :
Epictetus:
"Freedom is
secured not by the fulfilling of one's desires, but by the removal of
desire."
"Where is the
good? In the will. Where is the evil? In the will. Where is neither of them? In
those things which are independent of the will."
"Man is disturbed
not by things, but by the views he takes of them."
"If, therefore,
any be unhappy, let him remember that he is unhappy by reason of himself
alone."
"I am formed by
nature for my own good: I am not formed for my own evil."
"Permit nothing
to cleave to you that is not your own; nothing to grow to you that may give you
agony when it is torn away."
"He is a wise man
who does not grieve for the things which he has not, but rejoices for those
which he has."
"God is best
worshipped in the shrine of the heart by the desire to know and obey him."
Marcus Aurelius:
"Get rid of the
judgement, get rid of the 'I am hurt,' you are rid of the hurt itself."
"Live a good
life. If there are gods and they are just, then they will not care how devout
you have been, but will welcome you based on the virtues you have lived by. If
there are gods, but unjust, then you should not want to worship them. If there
are no gods, then you will be gone, but will have lived a noble life that will
live on in the memories of your loved ones."
"Everything is
right for me, which is right for you, O Universe. Nothing for me is too early
or too late, which comes in due time for you. Everything is fruit to me which
your seasons bring, O Nature. From you are all things, in you are all things,
to you all things return."
"If you work at
that which is before you, following right reason seriously, vigorously, calmly,
without allowing anything else to distract you, but keeping your divine part
pure, as if you were bound to give it back immediately; if you hold to this,
expecting nothing, but satisfied to live now according to nature, speaking
heroic truth in every word which you utter, you will live happy. And there is
no man able to prevent this."
"How ridiculous
and how strange to be surprised at anything which happens in life!"
"Outward things
cannot touch the soul, not in the least degree; nor have they admission to the
soul, nor can they turn or move the soul; but the soul turns and moves itself
alone."
"Because your own
strength is unequal to the task, do not assume that it is beyond the powers of
man; but if anything is within the powers and province of man, believe that it
is within your own compass also"
"Or is it your
reputation that's bothering you? But look at how soon we're all forgotten. The
abyss of endless time that swallows it all. The emptiness of those applauding
hands. The people who praise us; how capricious they are, how arbitrary. And
the tiny region it takes place. The whole earth a point in space - and most of
it uninhabited."
Seneca:
"The point is,
not how long you live, but how nobly you live."
"That which
Fortune has not given, she cannot take away."
"Let Nature deal
with matter, which is her own, as she pleases; let us be cheerful and brave in
the face of everything, reflecting that it is nothing of our own that
perishes."
"Virtue is
nothing else than right reason."
Your Assignment:
Find evidence in the play of Brutus’
Stoicism. What does he say and do that could be considered Stoic? Assess
Brutus’ Stoicism. Is it real or pretended? Are there examples in the play of
Brutus departing from his Stoicism, or of imperfections in his Stoicism? Is
there any evidence that Brutus’ Stoicism is responsible for his downfall?
Write 3 paragraphs minimum (good students will write more)! |