Epictetus Slave and Philosopher Epictetus was born in modern-day Turkey in 55 A.D. He was born a slave (in fact, his name literally means the ‘one who is owned by another’) and lived in Rome, serving in a wealthy household to Epaphroditus who was the tyrannical Nero’s secretary. Not only was Epictetus a slave, but he was also a cripple. Life must have been difHicult and it was perhaps for this reason that he started to study philosophy and, like Marcus Aurelius, his preferred philosophy was Stoicism. It was in this philosophy that Epictetus found ‘freedom’. Not the kind of freedom one gets from being recognized as no longer being a slave, but the kind of ‘freedom’ which comes from have a purposeful and calm mind. As he studied more and more philosophy, he became the student of a leading Stoic teacher in Rome at that time, called Musonius Rufus. And, before long, Epictetus was teaching Stoicism himself, a fact which greatly annoyed the paranoid and deranged emperor Domitian who, in 93 A.D., banished all philosophers from Rome in case they ever discussed any ideas against his authoritarian rule. Epictetus decided to spend his exile in a town called Nicopolis which is in modern-day Albania, and he certainly kept active, founding his own philosophical school there. This was a place where anyone could come and seek advice about what was troubling him or her in life. Many of Epictetus’ teachings were written down, word for word, by one of his pupils and these are called the Discourses. This same pupil, whose name was Arrian (he also wrote a history of Alexander the Great), condensed all of Epictetus’ teachings into a smaller document, called the Encheiridion (literally: ‘the little thing you must have near to hand’). This little manual, with advice on how to live, has been followed all through the millennia – only in the last 100 years has it become less well known. Marcus Aurelius read this ‘Encheiridion’ too and really valued the advice he found in it. It is not often that a slave and an emperor agree on the most important things in life. Epictetus died when he was quite old, around 80, having adopted and raised a son in his Hinal years. And he left behind philosophical teachings, some of which you will now read, even though there is almost 2,000 years between our time now and when those teachings were Hirst spoken. ! 1 The Most Fundamental Stoic Psychological Principle for Living We!: Knowing What is Under Our Control and What is Not “There are things which are under our control and things which are not under our control. Things that are under our control include how we choose to think about things, where we place our willpower, what we choose to value or avoid and, in a word, all of our own actions. That which is not under our control includes our body, possessions, reputation and, in a word, all the things which are not our own actions. Now, following that which is under our control brings a feeling of freedom and ease. In contrast, following that which is not under our control leaves us feeling weak and enslaved. So you should prepare yourself to watch out for any unhelpful thought and to say to it ‘You are a thought and not necessarily all that you appear to be.’ Then, examine the thought and compare it with your principles, the most important of which is whether the thought is about something which is under your control or something which is not under your control. And if it is something not under your control, be ready to say: ‘That is nothing to do with me!’” Epictetus, Handbook, §1. Overview: Stoicism is primarily concerned with teaching us how to think in ways that allow us to live the most productive life possible. The central discipline that helps with this is understanding what is under your control and what is not, for life becomes very difHicult if you put all of your efforts towards something which is not under your control. How this works in practice, however, is what is most important. ! 2 Let us illustrate the idea through the example of two students, one (James) who follows Epictetus’ advice, the other (John) who does not: Both James and John have their :inal university exams approaching. However both are thinking about them in rather different ways. John really wants to get a particular job and needs quite high marks in order to get an offer. He spends so much time thinking about the marks he needs to get that he works himself up into a panic. He worries about how much information he has to learn to the point that any new information he comes across seems like an ‘enemy’. He is plagued by constant thoughts of uncertainty ‘what if, I don’t get enough marks? I will have no chance in life. My parents will be angry with me that I have been to university and not achieved anything’. He often feels unbearable levels of stress, which hardly help with his work, and, at night, his dreams are troubled. James also has a certain job in mind but he is approaching the exams in a different manner. He has decided to focus his willpower solely on what he can do which, for him, means attending carefully to each lecture he visits, and following a well planned revision schedule. He knows that all he can ask of himself is to do his best whilst revising each section of the course. He centres his attention on going through the material slowly and methodically, knowing that by doing so he will best placed to do the exams. Indeed, he realizes that any time he spends worrying about results is wholly unnecessary and counterproductive: that is time that could be better spent elsewhere. He even allows himself to enjoy the work as he goes along as he sees no point in turning the process into a struggle (he might even enjoy the exams!). He has deliberately chosen to value something which is wholly in his control, a carefully planned schedule with breaks, and to avoid that which is not in his control, i.e. worrying incessantly about ‘what might be on the paper’ or ‘how many marks do I need to ensure I get above a certain grade overall’. And, if worries do come up (and they do, for James is human like anyone else), he monitors these thoughts and simply reminds himself of his principles and feels once more con:ident in his approach. Questions for Discussion • Do you agree with Epictetus that ‘knowing what is in your control and what is not in your control’ is essential for living well? • Explore the possible implications of this approach for other areas of your life such as sport, family life, relationships with friends and so on. Points for Re.lection • Epictetus says that the body is not under our control. Do you agree? What would Epictetus make of our own society’s concern with our ‘body-image’? • The body might not be ultimately ‘under our control’ but the Stoic can still value the actions which are conducive to the body’s wellbeing. In that sense, would you agree with the Stoics that being a ‘good caretaker’ of our body is ‘under our control’? What can you Do? • You could further reHlect, in your own time, on the implications of Epictetus’ approach for different aspects of your life which you discussed above. If you have exams coming up, and if you think it would be helpful, could you Hind ways to follow James’ approach? ! 3 Epictetus on ‘Being a Citizen of the World’ ‘If what is said by the philosophers about the common origin of god and men is true, what other alternative is left to us than to say what Socrates responded to anyone who asked him about his nationality? For he did not say that he was an Athenian or a corinthian but that he was a ‘citizen of the world’. Indeed anyone who has studied the structure of the universe and has learnt from his own study that the greatest government is the one made up of both men and god, and that from god have fallen the seeds of existence, not just to his own father or grandfather but to everything that is born and grows on this earth, why should that person not call himself or herself a ‘citizen of the world’?’ Epictetus, Discourses, 1.9 Overview: The Stoics thought that the universe was ordered in a rational way. This ordering of the universe they called ‘god’. However, the Stoic conception of divinity is rather different from other great monotheistic traditions with which we are more familiar today (for example christianity, Judaism or Islam), and it would be a good idea to sketch what ‘god’ meant for the Stoics. In brief, ‘god’ was the ‘logos’ or ‘reason’ by which everything in the world functioned and was not a divinity to which one prayed. The primary focus was on understanding what the implications of being a product of ‘god’ meant for your life. The Stoic position could be stated as follows: each human being’s greatest gift from god is the ability to reason, and in particular to reason out the best way to live. This ‘best way to live’ was the same thing as ‘living in accordance with nature’, and essentially involved Hinding out what way of living enabled a human being to Hlourish, fulHill their social role admirably and maintain a sense of balance and tranquility through all of life’s inevitable challenges.