Massimo Pigliucci's Blog

Epictetus on the consequences of human nature

“If what is said by the philosophers regarding the kinship of Nature and people be true, what other course remains for us but that which Socrates took when asked to what country he belonged, never to say ‘I am an Athenian,’ or ‘I am a Corinthian,’ but ‘I am a citizen of the universe’? For why do you say that you are an Athenian, instead of mentioning merely that corner into which your paltry body was cast at birth? …

As soon as you have had your fill to-day, you sit lamenting about the morrow, by...

Socrates’s rules of engagement

Socrates, Museo Schifanoia, Ferrara, Italy. Photo by the Author.

“Socrates excels the founder of Christianity in being able to be serious cheerfully and in possessing that wisdom full of roguishness that constitutes the finest state of the human soul.” (F. Nietzsche, Human All Too Human)

There is a fundamental difference between debate and dialogue. You debate an opponent, you dialogue with a fellow inquirer. Debates are inherently antagonistic, while dialogues are collaborative endeavors. I used ...

Epictetus on important vs accidental qualities

“Was not Plato a philosopher? Yes, and was not Hippocrates a physician? But you see how eloquently Hippocrates expresses himself. Does Hippocrates, then, express himself so eloquently by virtue of his being a physician?

Why, then, do you confuse things that for no particular reason have been combined in the same man? Now if Plato was handsome and strong, ought I to sit down and strive to become handsome, or become strong, on the assumption that this is necessary for philosophy, because a certain ...

Epictetus on the usefulness of logic

“Most people are unaware that the handling of arguments which involve equivocal and hypothetical premisses, and, further, of those which derive syllogisms by the process of interrogation, and, in general, the handling of all such arguments, has a bearing upon the duties of life. For our aim in every matter of inquiry is to learn how the good and excellent person may find the appropriate course through it and the appropriate way of conducting themselves in it. …

For what is the professed object of...

“Up to us”: the Stoic take on the free will problem

Some of the ancient thinkers who thought about free will, left to right: Aristotle, Chrysippus, Epictetus, Alexander of Aphrodisias, Plotinus.

I don’t believe in free will, understood as a will that is somehow independent of the universal rule of cause and effect. That would be a miracle, and I don’t believe in miracles either. (Let’s set aside any distracting discussions of quantum mechanics, which are not helpful, since random events are not “willed” anyway.)

Then again, I also do believe that I...

Practice like a Stoic: Conclusion

Practicing in one of ancient Athens’ gymnasia, by Midjourney.

If you made it this far in this 54-week marathon, Congratulations on completing our curriculum! You’ve put in a lot of hard work. While I hope you’ve learned a great deal from using this series and the accompanying book, the Handbook for New Stoics (co-written with my friend Greg Lopez), chances are you are not yet a Stoic sage. If that’s the case, then the next question is: What should you do now? This final installment (and correspon...

Suggested Readings

Pre-meditate on bad things happening… From That Philosophy Guy.

The Stoic litigator. A variety of events over the past several years have renewed my conversations with some reliable old friends. And I mean very old. I refer here to the Stoic philosophers, most of whom did their thinking and writing around the turn of the Common Era. The Stoics took their name from the central square of Athens, the Stoa Poikile, where Zeno is generally credited with founding the school in the early part of the thi...

What does it mean to “practice” Stoicism?

Two ancient Greco-Roman pankration wrestlers, image by Midjourney.

We hear a lot that Stoicism is a “practical” philosophy, and that we need to practice “spiritual exercises.” I too have written about this, on several occasions, including co-authoring a whole book on the topic, together with my friend Greg Lopez. (See also these articles here at The Philosopher Garden, not to mention my almost complete 54-part series on the topic.)

Moreover, there is ongoing research, carried out among others by m...

Practice like a Stoic: 52, Apply the dichotomy of control from dawn to night

The sun rising over the theater at Hierapolis (modern Pamukkale, western Turkey). Epictetus was born in this city. Photo by the Author.

[This series of posts is based on A Handbook for New Stoics—How to Thrive in a World out of Your Control, co-authored by yours truly and Greg Lopez. It is a collection of 52 exercises, which we propose reader try out one per week during a whole year, to actually live like a Stoic. In Europe/UK the book is published by Rider under the title Live Like A Stoic.Below...

Five Roman myths—part II

Ancient Roman soldier on horseback, by Midjourney.

Last time I invited you to walk with me down memory lane, to my days in elementary school when my teacher, Mrs. Darmond, taught me about five ancient Roman stories that were meant to have an impact on my moral upbringing.

We’ve learned about the Horatii brothers who avoided a long and costly war between Rome and the nearby city of Alba Longa. About Mucius Scaevola putting his hand in the fire to punish it because it had failed to kill the enemy ki...