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What the Stoics did for us

newhumanist.org.uk

11–20 of 66 posts

Re: What the Stoics did for us

#11
post #7

You can download Marcus Aurelius' Meditations for free at my project, Standard Ebooks: https://standardebooks.org/ebooks/marcus-aurelius/meditation... The translation is good and Meditations is one of my favorite books. Super interesting to get an inside look at how the most powerful man in the world used Stoicism to deal with both the weight of an empire, and with day-to-day trivialities. The Enchiridion is another…

For what it's worth, the Hays translation of Meditations is much easier reading.

Re: What the Stoics did for us

#12
post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Can you share some recommendations here?

How to be a Stoic by Massimo Pigliucci (author of the article) A Guide to the Good Life by William Irvine I also read The Obstacle is the Way by Ryan Holiday, which read too much like a self-help/business book to me. It might be to some people's tastes, but I found it lacked the substance of the two above. Ryan Holiday does have Daily Stoic email newsletter which is often interesting, though. Edit: Also, the 2003 Hay…

It most certainly is still in print. Fantastic translation.

Re: What the Stoics did for us

#13
post #7

You can download Marcus Aurelius' Meditations for free at my project, Standard Ebooks: https://standardebooks.org/ebooks/marcus-aurelius/meditation... The translation is good and Meditations is one of my favorite books. Super interesting to get an inside look at how the most powerful man in the world used Stoicism to deal with both the weight of an empire, and with day-to-day trivialities. The Enchiridion is another…

For what it's worth, the Hays translation of Meditations is much easier reading.

I also like Robin Hard's translation quite a bit.

Re: What the Stoics did for us

#14
post #4

I'm a forensic psychiatrist, and I work in corrections. I have been finding myself recommending books on stoicism to some of my patients after reading a few myself. It's a useful counterpoint to the modern idea that if your life is not Instagram/Pinboard material then you are a failure.

Maybe I misunderstand stoic philosophy, but the rule to override emotional responses to failure with serenity strikes me as overly broad. Sometimes it is simply easier to get angry and let it out; especially if that sends a valid corrective signal to someone who is at fault. And even if the failure was just bad luck, it seem totally fine to be mad for a couple of minutes or hours. It is simply the way our brains have…

It was less about eliminating emotion and more about recognizing what is and is not within our control, and not letting ourselves become mastered by things outside of our control.

Re: What the Stoics did for us

#17
It is pretty interesting to see Stoicism in a modern context too.

Albert Ellis developed Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy (REBT) in 1955. And later started the Albert Ellis Institute (http://albertellis.org/) with the aim of research and education in this area. Ellis refers to Epictetus in his first major publication.

The primary framework is described really well here (http://www.intropsych.com/ch13_therapies/a-b-c-d-e_mnemonic....) and is actively used in Behaviour Therapy to treat several forms.

Re: What the Stoics did for us

#19
post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Maybe I misunderstand stoic philosophy, but the rule to override emotional responses to failure with serenity strikes me as overly broad. Sometimes it is simply easier to get angry and let it out; especially if that sends a valid corrective signal to someone who is at fault. And even if the failure was just bad luck, it seem totally fine to be mad for a couple of minutes or hours. It is simply the way our brains have…

I think you are referencing more of the conversational definition of stoic rather than the philosophy of stoicism.

Agreed. The Stoics allowed themselves to have emotions. It is a common misconception that stoicism is about deadening feelings and reactions to the world. Stoics acknowledge and even embrace our emotions, but what stoics aim for after experiencing emotions and gut reactions is some of the most interesting parts of stoicism for modern readers.

I always direct people to http://classics.mit.edu/Epictetus/goldsay.html for a taste of Stoicism. It is still tricky because what most Stoics thought of as "God" and what a modern reader would interpret as (the Christian) God are pretty different, but it is still easy reading. Other than that caveat it is pretty easy to understand.

As a sort of random aside, some of the most memorable sections of Epictetus for me are when he would referee to a pupil or discussion partner as a "slave". It always gave me a good chuckle. "My nose is running." "Why do you have hands, you slave?" e.g. quit complaining and wipe your nose. The color of comments like that really gives a feel for when the stoics think someone is being dense or wasting their mind. Some of the time now, when I am feeling particularly sorry for my self, Epictetus will pop up in my mind and call me a slave for complaining and it really helps me get over whatever random thing I was fixated on.

Re: What the Stoics did for us

#20

On the advice of a friend, I bought https://www.amazon.com/Daily-Stoic-Meditations-Wisdom-Persev... a month ago. It's been an enjoyable morning read and a very approachable introduction to the philosophy.

Are people really allowed to shill like this openly?

Do you think I'm the author of that book and my thousands of other HN comments over the years are just an extremely thorough cover story?
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