This final strategy is about Stoic determinism: the wise man who views the world rationally is never surprised by anything in life. It’s another standard type of Stoic argument. We already know that there are both good men and bad men in the world. Bad men are bound to do bad things. Therefore, it would be irrational to expect otherwise. “To crave impossibilities is insanity, but it is impossible for the wicked to act otherwise.” Wishing bad men never to do wrong is as foolish as wishing that babies would never cry and becoming angry with them when they do.21 We can easily imagine that Marcus
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