NATURE and REASON in STOIC ETHICS a Dissertation Presented To
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166 BOOK REVIEWS Gretchen Reydams-Schils, the Roman Stoics
166 BOOK REVIEWS Gretchen Reydams-Schils, The Roman Stoics: Self, Responsibility and Affection. Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press, 2005. xii + 210 pp. ISBN 0-226-30837-5. In the third book of the Histones Tacitus presents us with the ludicrous picture of a Stoic philosopher mingling with the soldiers of the Flavian army as it prepares to invade the city, and preaching unheeded the blessings of peace and the dangers of war (3.81). The purveyor of this intempestiva sapientia was Musonius Rufus, an eques Romanus, a friend of many Roman senators, a political exile, and the hero of this book. The author sets out to prove that the Roman Stoics adapted originally Greek Stoic doctrine to emphasize the importance of social responsibility and social engagement to the life of virtue. Stoicism, for all its emphasis on self-sufficiency, independence of outer circumstances, and spiritual self-improvement, saw the instinct for sociability as implanted by divine providence in human beings, who were imbedded in a society of rational beings comprising men and gods. What the author thinks was the distinctive contribution of the Roman Stoics was to retrieve for the life of virtue the traditional relationships of parenthood and marriage that Plato and the Cynics had tried to denigrate. It is therefore not the Musonius Rufus of Roman politics that interests her, but the advocate of marriage as a union of body and soul between equals and the opponent of infanticide and child exposure. The structure of the book reflects this emphasis, for it ‘reverses the Stoic progression from self to god and universe’ (5). -
Heroic Individualism: the Hero As Author in Democratic Culture Alan I
Louisiana State University LSU Digital Commons LSU Doctoral Dissertations Graduate School 2006 Heroic individualism: the hero as author in democratic culture Alan I. Baily Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_dissertations Part of the Political Science Commons Recommended Citation Baily, Alan I., "Heroic individualism: the hero as author in democratic culture" (2006). LSU Doctoral Dissertations. 1073. https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_dissertations/1073 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at LSU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in LSU Doctoral Dissertations by an authorized graduate school editor of LSU Digital Commons. For more information, please [email protected]. HEROIC INDIVIDUALISM: THE HERO AS AUTHOR IN DEMOCRATIC CULTURE A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of the Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in The Department of Political Science by Alan I. Baily B.S., Texas A&M University—Commerce, 1999 M.A., Louisiana State University, 2003 December, 2006 It has been well said that the highest aim in education is analogous to the highest aim in mathematics, namely, to obtain not results but powers , not particular solutions but the means by which endless solutions may be wrought. He is the most effective educator who aims less at perfecting specific acquirements that at producing that mental condition which renders acquirements easy, and leads to their useful application; who does not seek to make his pupils moral by enjoining particular courses of action, but by bringing into activity the feelings and sympathies that must issue in noble action. -
Egoism and Altruism: the “Antagonists” Or the “Brothers”?
View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by InfinityPress Journal of Studies in Social Sciences ISSN 2201-4624 Volume 7, Number 2, 2014, 164-188 Egoism and Altruism: the “Antagonists” or the “Brothers”? Levit L. Z., Ph. D. The Centre for Psychological Health and Education, Minsk, Belarus Abstract. The article under consideration deals with the theoretical analysis and the practical research of the ratio between the two notions: egoism and altruism. The author shows the inadequacy of the one-sided, morally loaded interpretations of both terms. The scores of two ESM-investigations mostly show the positive correlation between the “egoism” and the “altruism” scales in a person’s everyday activity. The results obtained give the opportunity to replace the inadequate view on egoism and altruism as opposites by a more appropriate metaphor of the older and the younger brother. Such an approach removes the idea of antagonism which is usually ascribed to the egoism-altruism interrelation. Key words: egoism, altruism, meaning, happiness, personal uniqueness, positive psychology. © Copyright 2014 the authors. 164 Journal of Studies in Social Sciences 165 Person-oriented conception of happiness: introduction and the brief explanation. In the years 2006 – 2012 the author (Leonid Levit) elaborated a synthesizing conception of self-realization and happiness, which is based on the ideas of the systemic approach and combines biological, psychological, social and spiritual (the highest) levels of individual life and activity. The results of our seven-year work on the problem are summarized in five monographs (Levit, 2010; 2011a; 2011c; 2012 a; 2013 c) and articles (Levit, 2009; 2011 b, 2012 b, 2012 c; 2013 a; 2013 b; 2013 e; Levit, Radchikova, 2012 a). -
The Profoundest Problem of Ethics: About the Possibility of a Profound Solution
Louisiana State University LSU Digital Commons LSU Master's Theses Graduate School April 2019 The rP ofoundest Problem of Ethics: About the Possibility of a Profound Solution Pol Pardini Gispert [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_theses Part of the Ethics and Political Philosophy Commons Recommended Citation Pardini Gispert, Pol, "The rP ofoundest Problem of Ethics: About the Possibility of a Profound Solution" (2019). LSU Master's Theses. 4915. https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_theses/4915 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at LSU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in LSU Master's Theses by an authorized graduate school editor of LSU Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE PROFOUNDEST PROBLEM OF ETHICS: ABOUT THE POSSIBILITY OF A PROFOUND SOLUTION A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of the Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in The Department of Philosophy & Religious Studies by Pol Pardini Gispert B.A., Universitat de Girona, 2001 May 2019 For my mother and father, For as many books as I read, your actions are still my moral compass. ii Table of Contents Abstract ........................................................................................................................................... iv Preface ............................................................................................................................................ -
The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius Antoninus
The meditations of Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Originally translated by Meric Casaubon About this edition Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Augustus was Emperor of Rome from 161 to his death, the last of the “Five Good Emperors.” He was nephew, son-in-law, and adoptive son of Antonius Pius. Marcus Aurelius was one of the most important Stoic philosophers, cited by H.P. Blavatsky amongst famous classic sages and writers such as Plato, Eu- ripides, Socrates, Aristophanes, Pindar, Plutarch, Isocrates, Diodorus, Cicero, and Epictetus.1 This edition was originally translated out of the Greek by Meric Casaubon in 1634 as “The Golden Book of Marcus Aurelius,” with an Introduction by W.H.D. Rouse. It was subsequently edited by Ernest Rhys. London: J.M. Dent & Co; New York: E.P. Dutton & Co, 1906; Everyman’s Library. 1 Cf. Blavatsky Collected Writings, (THE ORIGIN OF THE MYSTERIES) XIV p. 257 Marcus Aurelius' Meditations - tr. Casaubon v. 8.16, uploaded to www.philaletheians.co.uk, 14 July 2013 Page 1 of 128 LIVING THE LIFE SERIES MEDITATIONS OF MARCUS AURELIUS Chief English translations of Marcus Aurelius Meric Casaubon, 1634; Jeremy Collier, 1701; James Thomson, 1747; R. Graves, 1792; H. McCormac, 1844; George Long, 1862; G.H. Rendall, 1898; and J. Jackson, 1906. Renan’s “Marc-Aurèle” — in his “History of the Origins of Christianity,” which ap- peared in 1882 — is the most vital and original book to be had relating to the time of Marcus Aurelius. Pater’s “Marius the Epicurean” forms another outside commentary, which is of service in the imaginative attempt to create again the period.2 Contents Introduction 3 THE FIRST BOOK 12 THE SECOND BOOK 19 THE THIRD BOOK 23 THE FOURTH BOOK 29 THE FIFTH BOOK 38 THE SIXTH BOOK 47 THE SEVENTH BOOK 57 THE EIGHTH BOOK 67 THE NINTH BOOK 77 THE TENTH BOOK 86 THE ELEVENTH BOOK 96 THE TWELFTH BOOK 104 Appendix 110 Notes 122 Glossary 123 A parting thought 128 2 [Brought forward from p. -
Humanism and Neo-Stoicism." War and Peace in the Western Political Imagination: from Classical Antiquity to the Age of Reason
Manning, Roger B. "Humanism and Neo-Stoicism." War and Peace in the Western Political Imagination: From Classical Antiquity to the Age of Reason. London: Bloomsbury Academic, 2016. 181–214. Bloomsbury Collections. Web. 26 Sep. 2021. <http:// dx.doi.org/10.5040/9781474258739.ch-004>. Downloaded from Bloomsbury Collections, www.bloomsburycollections.com, 26 September 2021, 04:18 UTC. Copyright © Roger B. Manning 2016. You may share this work for non-commercial purposes only, provided you give attribution to the copyright holder and the publisher, and provide a link to the Creative Commons licence. 4 H u m a n i s m a n d N e o - S t o i c i s m No state . can support itself without an army. Niccolò Macchiavelli, Th e Art of War , trans. Ellis Farneworth (Indianapolis, IN : Bobbs-Merrill, 1965; rpr. New York: Da Capo, 1990), bk. 1, p. 30 Rash princes, until such times as they have been well beaten in the wars, will always have little regard for peace. Antonio Guevara, Bishop of Guadix, Th e Diall of Princes , trans. Th omas North (London: John Waylande, 1557; rpr. Amsterdam: Th eatrum Orbis Terrarum, 1968), fo. 174v Th e Humanist response to the perpetual problems of war and peace divided into the polarities of a martial ethos and an irenic or peace- loving culture. Th ese opposing cultures were linked to an obsession with fame or reputation, honor, and the military legacy of ancient Greece and Rome on the one hand, and on the other, a concern with human dignity, freedom, and a stricter application of Christian morality. -
Understanding Rational Egoism
Understanding Rational Egoism CRAIG BIDDLE Copyright © 2018 by The Objective Standard. All rights reserved. The Rational Alternative to “Liberalism” and Conservatism OBAMACARE v. GOVERNMENT’S ASSAULT ANDY KESSLER ON Ayn Rand THE BRILLIANCE THE CONSTITUTION (p.11) ON CAREER COLLEGES (p.53) “EATING PEOPLE” (p.75) Contra Nietzsche CEO Jim Brown’s Vision OF LOUIS PASTEURTHE OBJECTIVE STANDARD THE WAR BETWEEN STANDARD OBJECTIVE THE for the Ayn Rand Institute EDUCATION IN INTELLECTUALS AND CAPITALISM Capitalism A FREE SOCIETY Because Science Alex Epstein on How to The Objective StandardVOL. 6, NO. 2 • SUMMER 2011 THE OBJECTIVE STANDARD The Objective Standard Improve Your World – 2014 VOL. 8, NO. 4 • WINTER 2013 Robin Field on Objectivism Forand theProfit Performing Arts The Objective Standard VOL. 12, NO. 1 • SPRING 2017 “Ayn Rand Said” Libertarianism It is Is Not an Argument VOL. 11, NO. 2 • SUMMER 2016 vs. THE OBJECTIVE STANDARD Time: The Objective Standard Radical Capitalism America CONSERVATIVES’FAULT at Her The Iranian & Saudi Regimes Best Plus: Is SPRING 2017 ∙ VOL. 12, NO. 1 NO. 12, VOL. ∙ 2017 SPRING (p.19) SUMMER 2011 ∙ VOL. 6, NO. 2 NO. 6, ∙ VOL. SUMMER 2011 MUST GO WINTER 2013–2014 ∙ VOL. 8, NO. 4 Plus: Ex-CIA Spy Reza Kahlili on Iran’s Evil Regime (p.24)Hamiltonian Ribbon, Orange Crate, and Votive Holder, 14” x 18” Historian John D. Lewis on U.S. Foreign Policy (p.38) LINDA MANN Still Lifes in Oil SUMMER 2016 ∙ VOL. 11, NO. 2 lindamann.com ∙ 425.644.9952 WWW.CAPITALISTPIG.COM POB 1658 Chicago, IL 60658 An actively managed hedge fund. -
No One Errs Willingly: the Meaning of Socratic Intellectualism
Created on 21 September 2000 at 13.38 hours page 1 NO ONE ERRS WILLINGLY: THE MEANING OF SOCRATIC INTELLECTUALISM HEDA SEGVIC κν κν µαρτον, ο κ ρνσοµαι. (Willingly, willingly I erred;I won’t deny it.) [Aeschylus], Prometheus Bound, 266 Video meliora proboque, deteriora sequor. (I see what is better and approve of it, but pursue what is worse.) Ovid, Metamorphoses,7.20 Concepts, just like individuals, have their history and are no more able than they to resist the dominion of time, but in and through it all they nevertheless harbour a kind of homesickness for the place of their birth. Sren Kierkegaard, The Concept of Irony, 13. 106 I The Western philosophical tradition is deeply indebted to the fig- ure of Socrates. The question ‘How should one live?’ has rightly been called ‘the Socratic question’. Socrates’ method of cross- examining his interlocutors has often been seen as a paradigmatic form of philosophical enquiry,and his own life as an epitome of the philosophical life. What philosophers and non-philosophers alike have often found disappointing in Socrates is his intellectualism. A prominent complaint about Socratic intellectualism has been mem- orably recorded by Alexander Nehamas: ‘And George Grote both expressed the consensus of the ages and set the stage for modern ã Heda Segvic 2000 I am grateful to Myles Burnyeat, David Furley, John McDowell, and Julius Morav- csik for their helpful comments on earlier versions of this paper. I also wish to thank the editor of Oxford Studies in Ancient Philosophy for his generous criticisms and corrections. Created on 21 September 2000 at 13.38 hours page 2 2 Heda Segvic attitudes toward Socrates when he attributed to him “the error . -
UC San Diego UC San Diego Electronic Theses and Dissertations
UC San Diego UC San Diego Electronic Theses and Dissertations Title Perfectionism, value pluralism, and the human good Permalink https://escholarship.org/uc/item/05w5h7mb Author Stedman, Jeffrey N. Publication Date 2006 Peer reviewed|Thesis/dissertation eScholarship.org Powered by the California Digital Library University of California UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO Perfectionism, Value Pluralism, and the Human Good A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Philosophy by Jeffrey N. Stedman Committee in charge: Professor Richard Arneson, Co-chair Professor David Brink, Co-Chair Professor Alan Houston Professor Richard Madsen Professor Donald Rutherford 2006 Copyright Jeffrey N. Stedman, 2006 All rights reserved. The dissertation of Jeffrey N. Stedman is approved, and it is acceptable in quality and form for publication on microfilm: _________________________________ _________________________________ _________________________________ _________________________________ Co-chair _________________________________ Co-chair University of California, San Diego 2006 iii DEDICATION For Adam iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Signature Page..........................................................................................................................iii. Dedication.................................................................................................................................iv. Table of Contents.......................................................................................................................v. -
The Stoics and the Practical: a Roman Reply to Aristotle
DePaul University Via Sapientiae College of Liberal Arts & Social Sciences Theses and Dissertations College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences 8-2013 The Stoics and the practical: a Roman reply to Aristotle Robin Weiss DePaul University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://via.library.depaul.edu/etd Recommended Citation Weiss, Robin, "The Stoics and the practical: a Roman reply to Aristotle" (2013). College of Liberal Arts & Social Sciences Theses and Dissertations. 143. https://via.library.depaul.edu/etd/143 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences at Via Sapientiae. It has been accepted for inclusion in College of Liberal Arts & Social Sciences Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Via Sapientiae. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE STOICS AND THE PRACTICAL: A ROMAN REPLY TO ARISTOTLE A Thesis Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy August, 2013 BY Robin Weiss Department of Philosophy College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences DePaul University Chicago, IL - TABLE OF CONTENTS - Introduction……………………..............................................................................................................p.i Chapter One: Practical Knowledge and its Others Technê and Natural Philosophy…………………………….....……..……………………………….....p. 1 Virtue and technical expertise conflated – subsequently distinguished in Plato – ethical knowledge contrasted with that of nature in -
Philosophy of Happiness Regents Professor Julia Annas
Philosophy 220: Philosophy of Happiness Regents Professor Julia Annas. MWF 1 – 1.50 pm. Chavez 301. The course has a D2L website, where all the readings are to be found. My office is Social Science Building 123. Office hours TBA. The Philosophy Department office is Social Sciences Building 213. Why happiness? Happiness matters!. There are large numbers of self-help books telling us how to be happy. Some nations are planning to measure the happiness of their citizens to find out how it can be increased. There is a huge field of ‘happiness studies’, and focus on happiness in positive psychology as well as politics and law. Much of this is confusing, since it’s often not clear what the authors think happiness is. Is it feeling good? Is it having a positive attitude to the way you are now? Is it having a positive attitude to your life as a whole? Is it having a happy life? How can some people advise others on how to be happy? Philosophers have explored happiness, and our search for happiness, for two thousand years. They have asked what happiness is, and have developed different answers, including some now being rediscovered. In this course we will ask what happiness is, and look at major answers. We’ll look at rich philosophical traditions of thinking about happiness, and also at some recent work in the social sciences. We’ll examine the contributions being made to the ongoing search to find out what happiness is, and how we can live happy lives. Course Readings Course readings will be available on the D2L site. -
Cicero on Epicurean Friendship: a Reappraisal 109
Cicero on Epicurean Friendship: A Reappraisal 109 POLITEIA VOL. 1, No 2, SPRING 2019 APPENDIX CICERO ON EPICUREAN FRIENDSHIP: A REAPPRAISAL Phillip Mitsis New York University Given the occasion, I thought I might take the opportunity to revisit my first pub- lished paper on Epicureanism1 originally begun in a Lucretius seminar at Cornell in 1978 taught by Elizabeth Asmis. The paper's argument now seems to me in retrospect to exhibit a certain naive confidence in Cicero's reliability as a source, and though I still stand by some of its overall conclusions about Epicurean friendship, my views about the nature of the path that one needs to take to get to those conclusions has changed considerably.2 Readers will best judge whether a forty-year gap in looking at these arguments, apart from merely complicating matters, has led to any progress. At De Finibus Bonorum et Malorum 1.65-70, Cicero, through the character of Tor- quatus, offers our most detailed and seemingly systematic surviving account of Epi- curean views of friendship. Brad Inwood has forcefully reminded us, however, that this work has a particular focus and that its overall structure and arguments clearly reflect it.3 Cicero is examining what the fines (limits, ends, criteria, etc.) of goods and of evils are in various rival philosophical theories and in the first two books he sets himself the project of presenting and criticizing the Epicurean claim that pleasure serves as a final end or goal of our actions. One recurring problem in his account is that he glosses the notion of finis with terms having different valences and, thus, those wishing to extract from Cicero's discussion Epicurus' original view of friendship are faced with the problem that he often describes the relation of friendship to pleasure in terminology imprecise enough to encompass different theoretical outlooks.