Discourses and Selected Writings (Penguin Classics)

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Discourses and Selected Writings (Penguin Classics)

Discourses and Selected Writings (Penguin Classics)

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But if everyone in his environment close themselves off from the world, he can then do what he wants. Back to my petty concerns, I would consider that during the next interview it would be best to remember beforehand very sincerely that there's nothing I can do to guarantee acceptance, and that all I can do is give it my all and fail gracefully, because it seems that jobs, possessions, relationships, and health are not enough by themselves to bring us peace of mind, and that accepting loss may be one of the most important abilities that any human being can learn. While this sounds naive today, it's an interesting perspective on the attempts of early man to understand complex dynamics. Epictetus was Greek of Roman period, Hierapolis was ancient Greek city, and not “greek speaking”, or ”Greaco-Roman” or other. Epictetus was one of the few authors to escape the Christian censorship and it is eminent why: the virtue models and ethics he constructs are reminiscent of official church doctrine.

If the Discourses on their own do not achieve this, then perhaps I am to blame or it simply cannot be helped. More concerning, however, is how Epictetus completely rejects the concept of bodily autonomy by keeping what affects our body outside our realm of choice. Arrian recorded and published Epictetus’ informal lectures and conversations on ethics, in eight books, of which four books and some fragments survive. Epictetus' Discourses and Selected Writings read like a self-improvement book, but an ancient one, written two millennia ago in the Roman Empire.The entire book literally has one single central message: "Focus on what you can control: Your thoughts. Epictetus often cites the example of athletes or craftsmen, as if such attitudes are not innate to humans, but acquired through a long apprenticeship.

While the exterior world of Epictetus belonged wholly to others, his mind and will were unassailably his own. Epictetus keeps referring to the Reason, which is the essential central aspect of humanity, the one thing that makes you you.If you are seeking to change your perspective or you're looking to grow,, this is a good starting book for you. For example, his proof that the gods exist is that the seasons change and flowers bloom and so on, except that we obviously have other explanations for all of those.

Both points make Stoic ethics hard to implement - it's simply inhuman (humans are not simply reasonable minds, they are social animals first and foremost) and it's immensely vulnerable to cheaters and immoralists. The Handbook is the quickest route to practicing Stoicism right away, and should probably be read first before diving into the Discourses. but you know, even if that's true, it's better to act like it's not true, in much the same way that the best outcomes come from assuming one's own life is totally under control but other people's lives are buffeted by the whims of chance, thus producing both compassion and personal dynamism.In Epictetus and his crude dialectic thought that is ultimately dependent on his god, however, many of the issues I have against Stoic philosophy shine through.

Diogenes the Cynic and Socrates are the two most often cited by Epictetus as good examples to follow, both men he describes as humble, ascetic, and unafraid to speak unwanted truths to power.So accordingly, that person who doesn’t allow himself to be overpowered by pleasure, or by suffering, or by glory, or by wealth, and who is capable, whenever he thinks fit, of spitting his entire miserable body into some tyrant’s face and taking his leave - to what can such a man still be a slave, to whom can he still be subject? These are parameters which were there from the start, and one wonders if a king is less tormented than a peasant, maybe they only differ in what kind of torments they suffer. Fittingly enough I failed a job interview in the middle of reading this and while the book's ideals were very clearly floating around my mind, they did not seem to offer a solution to the disappointment, despair and envy I went through in subsequent weeks.



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