Stoic Ethics

Author : William O. Stephens
Publisher : A&C Black
ISBN 13 : 1441170456
Total Pages : 199 pages
Book Rating : 4.53/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Stoic Ethics written by William O. Stephens and published by A&C Black. This book was released on 2007-05-10 with total page 199 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Soon after Aristotle's death, several schools of ancient philosophy arose, each addressing the practical question of how to live a good, happy life. The two biggest rivals, Stoicism and Epicureanism, came to dominate the philosophical landscape for the next 500 years. Epicureans advised pursuing pleasure to be happy, and Stoics held that true happiness could only be achieved by living according to nature, which required accepting what happens and fulfilling one's roles. Stoicism, more than Epicureanism, attracted followers from many different walks of life: slaves, laborers, statesmen, intellectuals, and an emperor. The lasting impact of these philosophies is seen from the fact that even today 'Stoic' and 'Epicurean' are household words. Although very little of the writings of the early Stoics survive, our knowledge of Stoicism comes largely from a few later Stoics. In this unique book, William O. Stephens explores the moral philosophy of Epictetus, a former Roman slave and dynamic Stoic teacher whose teachings are the most compelling defense of ancient Stoicism that exists. Epictetus' philosophy dramatically captures the spirit of Stoicism by examining and remedying our greatest human disappointments, such as the death of a loved one. Stephens shows how, for Epictetus, happiness results from focusing our concern on what is up to us while not worrying about what is beyond our control. He concludes that the strength of Epictetus' thought lies in his conception of happiness as freedom from fear, worry, grief, and dependence upon luck.

Author : Stan van Hooft
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1317544773
Total Pages : 529 pages
Book Rating : 4.77/5 ( download)

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Download or read book The Handbook of Virtue Ethics written by Stan van Hooft and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2014-09-11 with total page 529 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Virtue ethics has emerged as a distinct field within moral theory - whether as an alternative account of right action or as a conception of normativity which departs entirely from the obligatoriness of morality - and has proved itself invaluable to many aspects of contemporary applied ethics. Virtue ethics now flourishes in philosophy, sociology and theology and its applications extend to law, politics and bioethics. "The Handbook of Virtue Ethics" brings together leading international scholars to provide an overview of the field. Each chapter summarizes and assesses the most important work on a particular topic and sets this work in the context of historical developments. Taking a global approach by embracing a variety of major cultural traditions along with the Western, the "Handbook" maps the emergence of virtue ethics and provides a framework for future developments.

Author : Brian E. Johnson
Publisher : Lexington Books
ISBN 13 : 0739179683
Total Pages : 218 pages
Book Rating : 4.80/5 ( download)

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Download or read book The Role Ethics of Epictetus written by Brian E. Johnson and published by Lexington Books. This book was released on 2013-12-04 with total page 218 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Role Ethics of Epictetus: Stoicism in Ordinary Life offers an original interpretation of Epictetus’s ethics and how he bases his ethics on an appeal to our roles in life. Epictetus believes that every individual is the bearer of many roles from sibling to citizen and that individuals are morally good if they fulfill the obligations associated with these roles. To understand Epictetus’s account of roles, scholars have often mistakenly looked backwards to Cicero’s earlier and more schematic account of roles. However, for Cicero, roles are merely a tool in the service of the virtue of decorum where decorum is one of the four canonical virtues—prudence, justice, greatness of spirit, and decorum. In contrast, Epictetus sets those virtues aside and offers roles as a complete ethical theory that does the work of those canonical virtues. This book elucidates the unique features of Epictetus’s role based ethics. First, individuals have many roles and these roles are substantial enough that they may conflict. Second, although Epictetus is often taken to have only a sparse theory of appropriate action (or “duty” in older translations), Brian E. Johnson examines the criteria by which appropriate action is measured in order to demonstrate that Epictetus does have an account of appropriate action and that it is grounded in his account of roles. Finally, Epictetus downplays the Stoic ideal of the sage and replaces that figure with role-bound individuals who are supposed to inspire each of us to meet the challenges of our own roles. Instead of looking to sages, who have a perfect knowledge and action that we must imitate, Epictetus’s new ethical heroes are those we do not imitate in terms of knowledge or action, but simply in the way they approach the challenges of their roles. The analysis found in The Role Ethics of Epictetus will be of great value both to students and scholars of ancient philosophy, ethics and moral philosophy, history, classics, and theology, and to the educated reader who admires Epictetus.

Author : Gisela Striker
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
ISBN 13 : 9780521476416
Total Pages : 362 pages
Book Rating : 4.10/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Essays on Hellenistic Epistemology and Ethics written by Gisela Striker and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 1996-06-13 with total page 362 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This collection of essays focuses on key questions debated by Greek and Roman philosophers of the Hellenistic period.

Author : Ilaria Ramelli
Publisher : Society of Biblical Lit
ISBN 13 : 1589834186
Total Pages : 270 pages
Book Rating : 4.87/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Hierocles the Stoic written by Ilaria Ramelli and published by Society of Biblical Lit. This book was released on 2009 with total page 270 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Hierocles, the Stoic philosopher of the early imperial age, is a crucial witness to Middle and Neo-Stoicism, especially with regard to their ethical philosophy. In this volume, all of Hierocles surviving works are translated into English for the first time, with the original Greek and a facing English translation: the Elements of Ethics, preserved on papyrus, along with all fragments and excerpts from the treatise On Duties, collected by Stobaeus in the fifth century C.E. and dealing mainly with social relationships, marriage, household, and family. In addition, Ramelli s introductory essay demonstrates how Hierocles was indebted to the Old Stoa and how he modified its doctrines in accord with Middle Stoicism and further developments in philosophy as well as his personal views. Finally, Ramelli s extensive commentary on Hierocles works clarifies philosophical questions raised by the text and provides rich and updated references to existing scholarship.

Author : Arthur J. Pomeroy
Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9781589836297
Total Pages : 172 pages
Book Rating : 4.94/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Arius Didymus written by Arthur J. Pomeroy and published by . This book was released on 1999-01-01 with total page 172 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Author : Piotr Stankiewicz
Publisher : Vernon Press
ISBN 13 : 1622739442
Total Pages : 352 pages
Book Rating : 4.48/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Manual of Reformed Stoicism written by Piotr Stankiewicz and published by Vernon Press. This book was released on 2020-06-02 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book is a manifesto of reformed Stoicism. It proposes a system of life which is bullet-proof, universal, viable and effective in every cosmic setting. It holds in every possible universe, under any government and within any economic system. We can be reformed Stoics no matter what we believe in. Reformed Stoicism is about enjoying and exercising our agency. In other words, it’s about the flow of making autonomous and right decisions, and about celebrating our ability to make them. With no reliance on nature, with the recalibration of metaphysical positions, with skepticism towards grand discourses and universal answers, with an emphasis on the usefulness instead of truthfulness of narratives, with no reference to the vanity argument, with criticism of both conservative and ascetic misinterpretations of Stoicism, with an overall softer and more empathic approach, we can no longer be defined by the generic term “Stoicism”. Our time, in short, calls for a fresh interpretation of Stoicism. It is time for a new generation of Stoics. Thus: reformed Stoicism.

Author : Christoph Jedan
Publisher : A&C Black
ISBN 13 : 1441121722
Total Pages : 313 pages
Book Rating : 4.21/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Stoic Virtues written by Christoph Jedan and published by A&C Black. This book was released on 2011-11-03 with total page 313 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Like its ancient rivals, Stoic ethics was a form of virtue ethics, yet while the concept of virtue was clearly central to Stoic ethics, the concept of Stoic virtue has not yet been fully explored. Instead, the existing literature tends to impose on the Stoic material philosophically quite alien non-Aristotelian interpretations of virtue. According to Christoph Jedan, however, a thorough examination of the Stoic concept of virtue leads to a reassessment of our understanding of Stoic ethics. This book emphasises in particular the theological underpinning of Stoic ethics, which Jedan contends has been underestimated in current accounts of Stoic ethics. Jedan argues that the theological motifs in Stoic ethics are in fact pivotal to a complete understanding of Stoic ethics. The book focuses on Chrysippus, the most important of the early Stoic thinkers, suggesting that his contribution, and in particular its religious aspect, remained a key point of reference for later Stoics. This fascinating book makes a crucial contribution to the field of ancient ethics.

Author : Jack Visnjic
Publisher : BRILL
ISBN 13 : 9004446338
Total Pages : 188 pages
Book Rating : 4.35/5 ( download)

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Download or read book The Invention of Duty: Stoicism as Deontology written by Jack Visnjic and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2021-01-11 with total page 188 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Where did the notion of 'moral duty' come from? In The Invention of Duty: Stoicism as Deontology, Jack Visnjic argues that it was the Stoics who first developed a robust notion of duty as well as a deontological ethics.

Author : Adolf Friedrich Bonhöffer
Publisher : Peter Lang Incorporated, International Academic Publishers
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 368 pages
Book Rating : 4.94/5 ( download)

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Download or read book The Ethics of the Stoic Epictetus written by Adolf Friedrich Bonhöffer and published by Peter Lang Incorporated, International Academic Publishers. This book was released on 1996 with total page 368 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Born a slave, but later earning his freedom and founding a school for teaching Stoicism to the sons of Roman noblemen, Epictetus (c. 50-120 A.D.) has been a popular source of Stoic philosophy for centuries. Originally published in 1894 by the German scholar Adolf Bonhoffer and here translated into English for the first time, this work remains the most systematic and detailed study of Epictetus' ethics. The basis, content, and acquisition of virtue are methodically described, while important related points in Stoic ethics are discussed in an extensive appendix. Epictetus is compared throughout with the other late Stoics (Seneca, Marcus Aurelius), Cicero, the early Stoics (Zeno, Cleanthes, Chrysippus), and Christian moral thought. This approach shows that Stoic ethics continues to have great practical and pedagogical value."