Category: Stoicism

Applying Stoicism When Life Gets Tough

6/3/2017

I'm excited to share this guest post written by Travis Hume of Applying Stoicism. Travis is a special education paraprofessional. He writes daily on practical applications of Stoic philosophy for the modern day, based upon first-hand real-world experiences.

This article explores how to implement Stoicism to life’s difficulties, including the nature and origin of emotions, and the judgments that bring rise to them. My primary purpose is a deeper understanding of the psychological process we act upon on a moment-to-moment basis.

The goal, at the very least, is an improvement in control over our reactions to difficulties, and greater inner breathing room to develop a measured response to emotions. Establishing a deeper understanding of our psychological process may lead to life-long changes in behavior that sets us on a path towards Eudaimonia - a state of self-actualization, excellence, fulfillment, and flourishing as a human being.

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Musonius Rufus' Nurturing Stoic Family or Plato's Guardian Automatons?

5/16/2017

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Last month I had a post about philosophy and parenthood published at Modern Stoicism (formerly Stoicism Today). The post, linked here, is about how Plato's approach to parenting as described in the Republic is pretty much guaranteed to screw kids up.

On the other hand, the Stoic Musonius Rufus, writing somewhat later in antiquity, proposed a nurturing approach to family and raising children that happens to be very consistent with modern research on ideal infant attachment and child development. Here is an excerpt from the post (you can read the entire post at Modern Stoicism):

"Plato errs in viewing the care of young children as an unimportant activity which hinders or detracts from philosophy and the good of the state, rather than one which is good and philosophical in and of itself. Raising virtuous and empathetic children is a most important matter, maybe even the most important philosophical matter, because it is the cornerstone on which a good society is built to begin with."

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The Good Life at Home and at Work

3/1/2017

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I am pleased to publish this guest post by my friend Anitra Russel! Anitra studied classical languages and literature in high school and at university and has recently renewed her studies. She blogs about Stoicism at astoicremedy.com...

Gaius Musonius Rufus’ lectures are notable for their practicality and plain language, yet they also illuminate a path toward lofty goals. His lectures[1] on practicing philosophy, the proper occupation for a philosopher, and the chief end of marriage--lectures six, eleven, and thirteen, respectively--guide us toward the good life both at work and at home, one in which we cultivate ourselves by caring for those we love.

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Growing Up Stoic: Philosophical Education for Character, Persistence, and Grit

10/24/2016

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Just in case you missed it, my post about Stoic education for children ran on Stoicism Today a few weeks back.

I'll be publishing a new Common Sense Ethics post soon!

Image: Credit Stoicism Today

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The Social Justice Warrior Paradox

9/3/2016

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Do we have an obligation to be good, community minded citizens and to act accordingly? The simple answer is yes, but the full answer is more complicated, so please bear with me for a second.

I received some mildly critical feedback on my most recent post: 4 Pieces of Stoic Wisdom For Dealing With Negative News Media. (Nothing too harsh of course - this blog has polite readers!) The objections are with my suggestion that we should tune out news media entirely or almost entirely if we want equanimity. Those who commented, argued that Stoics (and presumably non-Stoics) have a duty to act socially and politically, and that ignoring the news smacks of self-interested isolation in the Epicurean Garden.

So, what is the problem with staying informed via news media, you ask? Isn't that what we are supposed to do in a democracy? There are two parts to this question which warrant a response. First, there is the problem of social and political action, ostensibly based on the information we get via media. In other words, what should we "do about," current issues? Second, there is the problem of the information itself - with the quality and manipulation of news and mass media - which I will go on to address in part 3 of this series.

Do social and political actions really have any effect? Can taking such actions be harmful? Do we have a duty to stay informed? Well yes...and no. It all boils down to the question of what do you plan on doing with the information you get from the news. There are certainly more and less ethical and effective ways to create a better community and a better world, so I have also included some helpful suggestions at the end of the post:

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4 Pieces of Stoic Wisdom For Dealing With Negative News Media

8/24/2016

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News headlines, predominantly negative and sensational, dominate our lives. We are barraged with news information 24/7 through our smart phones, social media, TV, websites, papers, and magazines. What is the consumption of news media doing to our brain and our outlook on life? Should we choose to avoid the news altogether?

It’s is not a new question to be asking. 2000 years ago, the Roman Stoic philosopher Musonius Rufus questioned the effects that negative forms of socialization have in our lives. We, as philosophers, should not worry about the things that most people do as a result of their constant consumption of news media.

“How could we acquire courage if we had merely learned that the things which seem dreadful to the average person are not to be feared, but had no experience in showing courage in the face of such things?” he asks.

You too can exercise the Stoics' ancient brand of philosophical wisdom and not get upset about events in the news. Terrorism? A shooting? Crisis? Corrupt Politicians? Freedom from these concerns can be yours via these 4 important realizations:

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Pythagoras and Stoic Meditation: Prescription For a Good Life

5/8/2016

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The Stoics used a form of meditation or reflective practice, which they may have borrowed from Pythagoreanism. It involves morning and evening meditations.

The morning meditation consists of being grateful for the new day when you wake up. You take a few moments to compose yourself and then think about your plans for the day ahead, imagining how you can make yourself a better person,
while also accepting that some events are beyond your control.

The evening mediation involves a daily retrospective where you think about what you did well during the course of the day, and also reflect on what you could have done better. The aim is personal growth and intentional cultivation of the four Stoic virtues: moderation, courage, fairness, and wisdom.

The Stoics reflective practice probably derived from the earlier Pythagorean school. Not much of Pythagoras' writings survived antiquity, since the school was destroyed by an angry mob, and Pythagoras himself may have been murdered.

What we do know about the Pythagoreans is that like the Stoics, they believed in the protective virtue of moderation, and that a person who wants to grow will naturally align themselves with the good.

This excellent Youtube video by the scholar Manly P. Hall, gives a great overview of the surviving Pythagorean fragments, entitled the Golden Verses of Pythagoras:

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Why Rushing Through Life Makes You Less Likely to Help Others

4/26/2016

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One really daunting aspect of modern life is that we are often busy, harried, and trying to multitask. A distracted state of mind can actually be an impediment to empathy, which forms the basis of our moral convictions.

Psychological studies have shown that people's ethical behavior is often out of sync with their sincerely held moral beliefs. Disturbing examples of this phenomena include the Standford Prison Experiments, where subjects tasked with being prison "guards," became increasingly more brutal towards "inmates." A less well know study conducted by Darley and Batson among seminarians, found that students who said they wanted to enter the ministry in order to help people where likely to ignore a person in distress depending on the circumstances.

Does the Darley and Batson study indicate that people actually aren't as moral as they think they are? Maybe. Or is it that people are just so mindlessly busy and self absorbed that they don't stop to focus on what is happening around them? Does distraction act as an impediment to helping others?

Epictetus argued that mindfullness, also known as prosoche, (which can be translated as ‘attention’) is essential for living an ethical life. Mindfullness is the antidote to the distracted, self-absorbed state that many people walk around in.

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Stoic Parenting: Fertile Ground for Eudaimonia

4/19/2016

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I recently had a guest post published on the blog Stoicism Today. The piece is about using Stoic philosophy to become a better parent.

Here is the link:

Stoic Parenthood: Fertile Ground for Eudaimonia

Enjoy!

Image: Credit Stoicism Today

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4 Life Lessons We Can Learn from the Cynics

4/10/2016

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The Cynics were ascetic philosophers of the Classical World. All that mattered to them was the practical applicability of wisdom. They were not concerned with theory and taught by the example of their lives, making a virtue of austerity, wit, and counter-culturalism.

They were quite eccentric, often going barefoot and living outside, which is where they picked up the moniker Cynic - based on the Greek word for dog. The most famous Cynic was Diogenes of Sinope. He commented, "I am called a dog because I fawn on those who give me anything, I yelp at those who refuse, and I set my teeth in rascals."

Diogenes was known for his scathing social criticism. He often carried a lantern around Athens in the daytime, claiming to be looking for an honest man. His teacher was Antisthenes, a disciple of Socrates who declared, "I would rather be mad than feel pleasure." Diogenes took the message to heart, voluntarily rejecting property and opining that Godlike men have few wants in life. Diogenes' life influenced Crates, a wealthy heir who abandoned his fortune to live on the streets of Athens. Cynics were also common in Rome later in antiquity.

Think there is nothing that we can learn from this band of wackos? Think again. We need not live a Cynic life ourselves to learn from the Cynic example. The best Cynic teachings offer us fabulous advice for practical living:

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Applying Stoicism When Life Gets Tough

Musonius Rufus' Nurturing Stoic Family or Plato's Guardian Automatons?

The Good Life at Home and at Work

Growing Up Stoic: Philosophical Education for Character, Persistence, and Grit

The Social Justice Warrior Paradox

4 Pieces of Stoic Wisdom For Dealing With Negative News Media

Pythagoras and Stoic Meditation: Prescription For a Good Life

Why Rushing Through Life Makes You Less Likely to Help Others

Stoic Parenting: Fertile Ground for Eudaimonia

4 Life Lessons We Can Learn from the Cynics

Growing in Goodness

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