The Philosophy of Stoicism: What do You Need to Know?
Stoicism can best be defined as a philosophy of life. It is a method that encapsulates multiple different facets of life in pursuit of ‘the good life’. Stoicism often discusses two main pursuits. The first pursuit is that of virtue, with the second pursuit being that of tranquility. Both of these pursuits will be discussed later on. History divides Stoicism into 3 main phases which are Early Stoa (3rd Century BC), Middle Stoa, (2nd and 1st Century BC), and Late Stoa (1st and 2nd Century CE). Many great philosophers practiced Stoicism throughout these time periods, but there was only one that founded Stoicism during his time in Ancient Greece.
Origins of Stoicism
Now, I won’t bore you with the details. Much of Stoic philosophy is rooted in ancient times back when the calendar counted down, not up. However, it’s important that I outline the foundation of Stoicism so we can gain a baseline understanding of where it started. Stoicism was founded around 300 BC by Zeno of Citium. Due to the fact that information wasn’t stored as easily back then, none of Zeno’s work survived, but we know about his impact due to works from other philosophers at the time. The word ‘Stoic’ was derived from the words ‘Stoa Poikile’, which translates to ‘painted porch’. The Stoa Poikile was the location where Zeno taught from.
It is said that Zeno arrived in Athens after his ship had wrecked. Upon arrival, he took an interest in the teachings and philosophy of Socrates, whose philosophy is rooted in Cynicism. Think of Cynics in ancient times like homeless people in the modern world. They only carried the clothes on their backs and just enough food for survival. Thus, Zeno took bits and pieces from Cynicism and used it to form his own philosophical way of life that we know today as Stoicism.
Four Virtues of Stoicism
Virtue can be described as a morally good behavior or characteristic. One of the concepts that is readily discussed in Stoicism is the pursuit of virtue. Virtue is clearly an important piece of Stoicism and what it means to be a Stoic. These four virtues are something that every Stoic strives for on a daily basis.
1) Wisdom
Wisdom can be defined as the ability to navigate through the trials and tribulations of life in a rational manner. As we know, being able to control our emotions is a large part of what it means to be a Stoic. By controlling our emotions, a Stoic can practice wisdom without worrying about emotions overriding their thought process.
2) Courage
Courage is largely associated with extreme circumstances such as losing a loved one. However, Stoicism preaches courage throughout daily life. This means being courageous in all that we do on a daily basis. If we mess something up at work, we own up to our mistake. If someone has an opinion we disagree with, we speak up ourselves and our opinion. Being courageous is strived for throughout daily life.
3) Temperance
Temperance means exercising self-restraint and practicing moderation in all aspects of life. Self-restraint can mean resisting the urge to eat that ice cream because we’re on a diet or not allowing ourselves to start that next Netflix episode because we’ve got to get up early in the morning. Moderation means enjoying, but not over-indulging. This can be especially helpful when it comes to alcohol, junk food, and video games.
4) Justice
Justice means treating everyone with the same level of fairness, even when some may have done wrong. Stoicism is built upon this idea of honesty, equality, and fairness when it comes to all. We are all on the same playing field and it should be viewed as such.
Core Principles of Stoicism
There are many core principles that are associated with Stoicism and what it means to be a Stoic. In fact, there are so many that I only pulled five principles to discuss as I felt they were the most relevant and most important. The other principles will be touched upon another time.
Negative Visualization
One of the ideas that makes Stoic philosophy so inspiring, is its ability to prepare our mind for the worst. For Stoicism, preparing our minds in advance can turn the worst-case scenario into a manageable problem. In addition, negative visualization also deals with material possessions as well. One of the core principles that separates Stoicism from Cynicism is that Cynicism preaches indifference to pleasure and the finer things in life. Stoicism on the other hand does believe in the enjoyment of pleasure, but this is where negative visualization comes into play. As a Stoic, we have to be okay with the idea that we may one day lose these things. We may enjoy them, but we have to also be okay with their absence when that day comes.
Control What You Can Control
This is my favorite principle when it comes to Stoicism, and I try to remind myself of this concept on a daily basis. To control what you can control means focusing on your effort, not your results. It means doing what is asked of you, but not worrying about the success. It means speaking your mind, but not worrying about what other people have to say about you or your opinion. By focusing on what we can control and accepting what we can’t, we increase our likelihood for success because we can’t be discouraged by external factors.
“Make the best use of what is in your power, and take the rest as it happens. Some things are up to us and some things are not up to us.” – Epictetus
Pursuit of Tranquility
The pursuit of tranquility is the foundation upon which Roman Stoicism was developed. In A Guide to the Good Life: The Ancient Art of Stoic Joy by William Irvine, it states, ” Stoic tranquility was a psychological state marked by the absence of negative emotions, such as grief, anger, and anxiety, and the presence of positive emotions, such as joy”. As you can see, tranquility does not mean an absence of all emotion, it just means an absence of negative emotion. Tranquility allows our minds to be calm and uninterrupted.
Meditation
For a Stoic, meditation doesn’t mean sitting crisscross on the ground, closing your eyes, and reciting a mantra. Meditation for a Stoic means to evaluate one’s thoughts. A Stoic must be consciously aware of his progress as a Stoic and how he is developing. One of the great Stoic philosophers, if not the greatest, was Marcus Aurelius. Marcus Aurelius was a Roman Emperor from 161 CE to 180 CE where he is known as being the last of the 5 good Emperors of Rome. In the modern world, Marcus is well known for his book, Meditations. Meditations is a compilation of Marcus’ thoughts that he wrote down every night in his journal. Embodying the principle of meditation, Marcus would constantly track his thoughts and think through complex issues that arose during his time as Emperor.
Perception Rules
One of the overarching themes that Stoicism discusses is the idea of control. I outlined above how Stoicism preaches to control what we can control. We don’t allow external circumstances to ruin our internal sense of well-being. One of the ways we can do this is by understanding the idea of perception. Perception can be defined as, “The way we think about or understand someone or something”. As a Stoic, it’s important to realize that whenever we get upset, angry, or frustrated, it is not the person who we believe wronged us or the event that we believe happened to us, but it is our perception of said person or event that causes these emotions. People may view this as bottling up our emotions, but rather it is a shift in mindset that alters our emotional state altogether
“Today I escaped from anxiety. Or no, I discarded it, because it was within me, in my own perceptions – not outside” – Marcus Aurelius
Modern Stoicism
Stoicism, although founded thousands of years ago, still has a lot of value in today’s world. Many of the concepts these Stoic philosophers discussed can be readily applied throughout everyday life. The only difference being, instead of messenger pigeons we have iPhones. The wonderful thing about Stoicism is that it stretches our mind, makes us question ourselves, and forces us to think through life’s most complex problems. For us, we’re trying to find our place in this world as we enter a new time in our lives. Stoicism can help us overcome these challenges.
Check out this YouTube video I’ve inserted down below. It does a wonderful job of outlining Stoicism on the surface and what it entails. Also, be sure to leave a comment down below or share this article if you enjoyed it. You can also reach me directly on my contact page with your thoughts about the article. Stay mindful!
