Hellenistic Ethics

Epictetus’s Encheiridion and Epicurus’s Writings
G. J. Mattey Winter, 2006 / Philosophy 1
Hellenistic Ethics • In the generation after Aristotle (the “Hellenistic” period), there arose two new philosophical schools to compete with the schools of Plato and Aristotle. – Stoicism, – Epicureanism. • Although both schools made important claims about reality and knowledge, their chief concern waswith ethics. • The Stoics took Socrates as their model and developed a doctrine of an ideally virtuous person—the sage. • The Epicureans advocated a life of “pleasure.” • The names of both schools have been preserved in contemporary English: – “Stoic”: Dispassionate person who is indifferent to pleasure and pain. – “Epicurean”: Sophisticated pursuer of pleasure. Roman Stoics • The Stoic schoolflourished in the Roman Empire long after its inception in Greece. • It was popular because of its emphasis on civic virtue. • Its most powerful Roman advocate was Marcus Aurelius, Emperor of Rome (121-180). • We will examine a work by a former slave, Epictetus, who influenced Marcus Aurelius (55-135).

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Autonomy • The main concern of the Stoics was to live the best possible life, which is a life ofhappiness. • The key to good living is the recognition of the limits of our autonomy or control over our own lives. • The only things under our control are our: – Opinions, – Impulses, – Desires and aversions. • We become unhappy when we confuse what is in our control with what is not. • The key to a smooth life is to treat that which is not in our control with indifference, as being nothing tous. Evading Unhappiness • There are two ways in which we take an interest in an object or state of affairs: – We desire it and seek to gain it, – We are averse to it and seek to avoid it. • Correspondingly, there are two specific ways in which our interest leads to unhappiness: – Something that is desired is not attained, – Something to which one is averse comes to pass. • To be happy, we shouldregulate our interests in the following ways: – Not to desire anything that is not under our control or will not occur in the natural course of events, – Not to be averse to anything that is not under our control or will occur in the natural course of events. Joy and Distress • Ideally, we should be able to avoid distress. • Distress occurs when we make a false judgment. – Death is dreadful. • When werecognize that a matter is out of our control, then we can judge truly that it is not something to dread. • We are truly joyful when we recognize our own ability to control ourselves. • What we have brings no true joy, because it could vanish at any time. 2

Training in Self-Control • We should follow the lead of Socrates and become masters of ourselves. • Our desires for and aversions tothings that are out of our control can be overcome through self-discipline. • It is especially important that we avoid taking an interest in external goods and in honors, both of which are not in our control. • On the positive side, it is crucial that we act so as to improve our faculty of judgment, in order know what happens by nature and what happens under our control. Assigning Praise and Blame •We should confine our praise and blame for human actions to our own. – Only these actions are under our own control. • We might be tempted to condemn the actions of others that bring harm upon ourselves. • But it should be recognized that the others are only doing what they believe to be appropriate. • The other has made an error in judgment and is in fact harmed by that error. • Nature can only bepraised, because it is divine and arranged in the best way. • To claim that there is natural evil is to blame the gods, which is never appropriate. Living a Life of Reason • It is ultimately our understanding of nature and ourselves which leads us to the path to happiness. • But this understanding of how to live a life of self-control is not sufficient for happiness. • One must still put this...