The Stoic Jew

Is “Subjugation” to Stoicism a Bad Thing? (Epictetus – Discourses 4:4)

February 22, 2022 Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss Season 7 Episode 6
The Stoic Jew
Is “Subjugation” to Stoicism a Bad Thing? (Epictetus – Discourses 4:4)
Show Notes

Synopsis: This episode is another attempt on my part to articulate a problem I have with Epictetus’s presentation of Stoicism. I’d like to believe that it’s less a critique of the content of his teachings and more a critique of Epictetus’s presentation – or, to be more accurate, the presentation of his student, Arrian – but I still believe that Epictetus’s Stoicism lends itself to this criticism than that of Marcus Aurelius or Seneca. 

Related Rabbi Schneeweiss Content:
- Yet Another Inhuman Facet of Epictetus's Stoicism
- Thinking Aloud About My Fundamental Disagreement with Epictetus

Sources:
- Epictetus, Discourses 4:4:1-2; 15; Enchiridion (The Handbook) 1
- Pesachim 50b
- Naval Ravikant, quoted in Tim Ferriss’s Tribe of Mentors
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