The Ethics of Stoicism

Just like Epicureanism, Stoicism was also aiming for happiness. However, unlike the
Epicureans, who held that happiness can be obtained by way of pleasure, the Stoics held that
happiness can only be obtained by way of wisdom. Such wisdom will be the means in order to
control what has been within the human power and to accept with dignified resignation what
had to be.
The Stoics were also admirers of the strong character of Socrates, who faced death with
courage and serenity. They also admired Socrates' great control over his emotions even in the
face of the grave threat to his existence.
Stoics also believed that excessive desires may lead the person to depression and,
therefore, to unhappiness. What influenced them from developing this philosophy was because
of the philosophy of Cynicism, the philosophy which despised the widespread hedonism and
hypocrisy in Athens.
Cynicism: The Origin of Stoic Philosophy
Cynicism was a philosophical school that revolted
against the rigidly ordered philosophies of Plato and
Aristotle. It was said to have been founded by Antisthenes,
who took Socrates as a model for the Stoics. It was said that
Antisthenes had to walk almost five miles every day to hear
Socrates (Soccio, 202).
Impressed by the lifestyle of Socrates, Antisthenes
sought to follow both the life and philosophy of Socrates.
Socrates' disdain for fashion, his ragged but functional
clothing, lack of shoes, ability to not sleep or eat for long
periods, his physical toughness and forthright honesty made
a tremendous impression on the young Cynic.
After the death of Socrates, Antisthenes founded a
school called the Cynosarges (the Silver Dog). The term
Cynic is the Greek word for dog. Later on, one student of
Antisthenes, Diogenes of Sinope (404-323BCE) was labeled
as the cynic because it was said that he lived like a dog, i.e.,
he was unwashed and rough-looking, scrounging for food,
The Philosopher Antisthenes
and refusing to follow the conventional standards of dress
and behavior.
Inasmuch as Antisthenes attended some lectures of Gorgias, an epistemological nihilist,
and because he stayed so close to Socrates, he was greatly influenced by the stinging attacks on
such sophistic values as power, prestige, wealth, and clever deception.
The Cynics believed that the very essence of civilization is corrupt. Manners, according to
them, are hypocritical and phony. They also believed that material wealth weakens the people
and makes them physically and morally soft. The desire for success and power produces
dishonesty and dependency. Flattery, fashion, and convention destroy the individual and make

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everyone vulnerable to the whims of fortune. And, as the tragic death of Socrates underscored,
not even the wisest person can control other people or external events (Soccio).
From the point of view of the cynics, happiness could not be obtained by means of pleasure.
believed that luxury always brings complications and, eventually, to great frustrations. In this
regard, pleasure should not be sought after if one will be aiming for happiness. They held instead
that happiness can come from self-discipline, rational control of all desires and appetites, and
minimal contact with conventional society.

Diogenes lived as a beggar in the streets of Athens and made a

virtue of extreme poverty

Few cynics exhibited the moral or intellectual virtues of Antisthenes or Diogenes. For this
reason, Cynicism fell into disrepute. At the same time, later cynics were hostile, arrogant
individuals, who despised everyone else and hated the society in which they lived.
The Stoic Philosophers
Zeno of Citium (c. 334-262 BCE)
Zeno of Citium was the known founder of Stoicism. He
was originally a Phoenician who came to Athens as a young
man in order to study philosophy. He studied under the Cynic
philosopher Crates. According to history, in order to help
Zeno overcome his attachment to social convention, Crates
would publicly embarrass Zeno by smashing a pot he was
carrying, so covering him with lentils. Although this may not
be good at first glance, through such kinds of experiences,
Zeno was able to inherit the Cynics' distrust of social niceties,
which Zeno regarded as irrational. This led him to establish
the Stoic school of philosophy, which was named after the
portico, or what they called the painted porch—
  (stoa poikile). The said portico was used by
Zeno as a place where he could have his lectures. Hence, the
philosophy of Zeno came to be known as Stoicism.

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 As mentioned earlier, Zeno was inspired by the ethical teachings and, particularly, by the
courageous death of Socrates. Due to the fate of Socrates, the followers of Stoicism were able
to realize the immoralities of the people of Athens; hence, they placed tremendous emphasis on
the morality of the human person. The Stoics had given importance to all the three divisions of
philosophy formulated by Aristotle; namely, logic, physics, and ethics (Stumpfand Fieser, 106).
The Logic and Physics of Aristotle were taken by the Stoics as just a way in order to justify the
precepts of ethics.
Stoicism is essentially a system of ethics, which, however, is guided by logic as a theory of
method, and rests upon physics as its foundation. Briefly, their notion of morality is stern,
involving a life in accordance with nature and controlled by virtue. The Stoics believed that both
pain and pleasure, poverty and luxury, sickness and health, were supposed to be equally
unimportant. Because of the Stoic's emphasis on the ethical life of the people, Zeno lived an
ascetic life, as befitting his philosophy. Although he wrote of a utopia in the Republic, none of
his works has survived. It is said that having fallen and broken a toe, Zeno took this as a sign that
he was being called to death. And so, he strangled himself (Law 2007, 252). His teachings can be
best understood upon reconstructing from the later Stoics whom he influenced.
Epictetus, the Sage Slave (c. 50-130CE)
Although the Stoic school was
founded in Greece, it flourished in
Rome. Through Alexander the Great,
Greece was able to conquer the
Persian Empire. It was for this reason
that Greece was able to establish its
power over a large area of the Near
East and Egypt. Eventually, Greek
culture became more sophisticated
and cosmopolitans absorbing ideas
and customs from the cultures it
conquered. As the Greek empire expanded, the importance of individual city-states, such as
Athens and Sparta, diminished, and people identified themselves as part of a larger, more
international community.
When Alexander died, his empire began to fall apart. By the middle of the 2nd century BCE,
Rome had destroyed what was left of Alexander's kingdom and annexed Greece as a Roman
province called Achaia. By 100 BCE, Rome had controlled the entire Mediterranean area.
The Romans were not particularly interested in abstract, speculative thinking. Pragmatic
and religiously tolerant, the Romans borrowed heavily from Greek culture, including
philosophy. Given their interest in establishing social order, the Romans were especially
attracted to the Stoics' emphasis on duty and self-control.
One of the most philosophically influential Stoic was a Roman slave by the name of
Epictetus. Inasmuch as a slave's life is not his own, Epictetus was able to reflect on the major
issue of Stoicism: controlling what we can and accepting what is beyond our-control.
Not much is known about Epictetus' life except that his mother was a slave living in
Hierapolis. It was said that he was brought to Rome as the slave of a former slave named
Epaphroditus, who must be Nero's administrative secretary. Probably due to his unusual abilities,
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Epaphroditus sent Epictetus to study with Musonius Rufus, the most powerful Stoic since the
days of Zeno (Soccio, 206).
From the Stoic, he developed the idea that he could be bought or sold, pampered or
tortured, at his owner's whim. As a slave, he was always reminded that what happened to him
had no bearing on his own wishes or behavior. As a slave, the only absolute control he had was
over his own reaction to what was happening. His motto in life was   
(Anechou kai apechou): Bear and forbear.
There was a time when Epictetus was badly tortured because of the mistake of another
slave. The punishment accorded to him became the reason why he limped for the rest of his life
because his broken leg did not heal properly. According to the story, his leg was being twisted
as a punishment. He reminded his master that a person's leg was likely to break under such
torture. Epaphroditus ignored this, and when his leg finally broke, Epictetus said: "See, it's just
as a told you." Later on, he was believed to have said: "I was never more free than when I was
on the rack." He had learned that he could control his attitude. However, fate controlled his life
(Soccio). Epictetus was given freedom sometime after Nero's death in the year 68 CEO Later on,
he became a well-known teacher.
The Stoic Emperor, Marcus Aurelius (121-180 CE)
Marcus Aurelius Antoninus lived his life surrounded by
commotion, deception, and crowds. During his younger days,
he was able to impress Emperor Hadrian that led the latter to
advise Marcus' uncle, Aurelius Antoninus (more commonly
known as Antoninus Pius) to adopt Marcus. When Marcus
reached the age of 40, Antoninus Pius, then emperor,
appointed Marcus heir instead of the other adopted son of
Pius, Lucius Verus.
When Pius died in 161 CE, Marcus generously named his
stepbrother Verus as the co-emperor—against the wishes of
the Senate. However, Marcus got little help from Verus. All
the serious work of governing was done by Marcus.
During the time of his emperorship, he was obliged to
contend with flatterers, liars, and enemies. He was regularly
dragged away from Rome .to deal with uprisings and
barbarian invasions along the frontiers. He was betrayed by a
trusted general and spent the last years of his life away from
home on a difficult military campaign. He suffered through
the deaths of four of his five sons, and he even endured unsubstantiated rumors that his wife
took many lovers in his absence and his sole surviving son was not his own.
Although he lived his life in the midst of lies and betrayals, Marcus was loved by many
Romans for his kindness and mercy. He refused to turn away from his incompetent stepbrother,
choosing instead to carry out both their duties until Verus died in 169, after which Marcus ruled
alone. He convinced the Senate to pardon the family of the traitorous general when other
emperors would have destroyed it. Instead of taking revenge against those people who had
been accused to be his wife's lovers, he recommended them to be promoted as this could be for
the good of Rome.
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 Marcus combined classical philosophy with a spiritual quality that foreshadowed the
Christian-influenced Scholasticism of the Medieval Ages. He was also one of the kindest, wisest,
and most virtuous philosophers.
The Philosophy of the Stoics
The Stoic philosophy centers on the ethical living. Its ethical teaching is based on two
principles that were developed in their physics. According to the Stoics, the universe is governed
by absolute law, which admits no exceptions. They also believed that the essential nature of the
human person is the reason, both of these ideas are summed up on the famous Stoic maxim—
"live according to nature."
This Stoic maxim has two aspects. In the first place, it means that human persons should
conform themselves to nature in the wider sense, i.e., to the laws of the universe; and secondly
that they should conform their actions to nature in the narrower sense, i.e., to their own essential
nature - reason.
These two expressions mean, for the Stoics, the same thing because the universe is
governed not only by law, but also by the law of ourselves, and we, in following our own rational
nature, are ipso facto conforming ourselves to the laws of the larger world. In a certain sense,
there is no possibility of disobeying the laws of nature for we, like all else in the world, act out of
necessity
Zeno considered virtue as a life according to reason. Morality, for him, is simply rational
action. For the Stoics, morality is a universal reason, which is to govern our lives, not the caprice
of the self-will of the individual. In this sense, a person is said to be wise if he will subordinate his
life to the life of the whole universe, and recognize himself as a gear in the great machine that
without which, this said the great machine will not be able to function.
Stoicism started from the premise of a natural order of the universe, which included the
process of change, and was, at the same time, divine. Although the natural order of the universe
is considered as divine, the human person is capable of understanding its divinity as well as its
laws through the reason possessed by all human persons.
As stated earlier in this chapter, just like the Epicureans, the aim of the Stoics is the
attainment of happiness. However, unlike the Epicureans, the Stoics believe that happiness
could not be found in pleasure. Instead, the Stoics tend to look for happiness in wisdom. Such
wisdom will be the means in order to control what has been within the human power and to
accept with dignified resignation what had to be.
The Stoics believed in fate and destiny. According to them, it is indeed impossible to control
what will happen in the future. However, it is also useless to fear the future because they will
happen anyway whether we like it or not. Therefore, instead of fearing the future, the people
should learn to control the attitude towards what will happen. In this regard, we have nothing
to fear but fear itself. conclusion, therefore, is simple enough: control one's attitudes.
Even though the Stoics believed in destiny or fate, they also talked about choosing
appropriate actions, in addition to just controlling our attitudes. Epictetus, for instance, talks
about choosing to be a philosopher or deciding to train for the Olympics. This implies that the
people have at least some degree of influence over his actions. In this regard, the Stoics must
have thought that man has influence over more than just his attitudes; otherwise, such advice is
illogical. The advice makes sense only when there Is some choice (Soccio, 213).
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 For the Stoics, the world was so arranged that everything on it was acting on the principle
of purpose. They saw throughout all of nature the operation of reason and law. According to
them, there was a rational substance that is existing in the whole of nature. This rational
substance is the Logos. From the guidance of this Logos, the universe remains rational and
ordered. Stoic philosophers considered this Logos, as the o (Theos) or God, the Absolute
Reason.
Inasmuch as God is Reason, it follows that the world is governed by reason. This idea means
two things: first, it means there is purpose in the world, and therefore, there is order, harmony,
beauty, and design. Second, since reason is law as opposed to lawlessness, it means that the
universe is subject to the absolute sway of law. In this regard, the universe is governed by the
rigorous necessity of cause and effect. Every individual, therefore, is not free and there can be
no freedom of the will in a world that is governed by necessity. For instance, we may without
harm, say that we choose to do this or that and that our acts are voluntary. But such phrases
merely mean that we assent to what we do. What we do is nonetheless governed by causes and,
therefore, by necessity.
The Human Drama
Stoicism rests on the simple insight that the world is like a stage where every person is an
actor or actress. In this drama, the Stoic Epictetus believed that each actor had his own role to
play. There are people who will play only a small role, while there are others who are tasked to
play lead roles. Epictetus held that in this drama, it is the Director who selects actors to play
various roles. Consequently, in this drama of the world, it is God, who is the author of life and the
director of the human drama, who chooses the role that will be played by each and every one.
This same God determines the situation of everyone in the whole paradigm of history (Stumpf &
Fieser, 103).
Tie Stoics held that actors do not have any control over the story. The only thing that the
actors can control is their attitudes and emotions. In this regard, it is necessary that each
individual actors should be able to know their individual roles to play. By knowing the role to
play, they eventually acquire wisdom in dealing with life. For this reason, human wisdom consists
only in recognizing' the role that one has to play in this drama of life and performing the part
well.
The Stoics also believed that the Divine Providence governs everything that happens in the
world. In this regard, if the situation will arise that a person sees that his son is in danger of
drowning, it will definitely be the duty of the parent to save his son. However, if he fails to save
the child after doing everything that he must do, then he must accept his failure without any
remorse and without any feeling of guilt, and thereby, without diminishing his happiness. This is
because the author of this human drama governs everything that happens. And so, his failure
must have been for the best as it is according to the script set by the director, even though the
human person cannot understand why these things are happening. For the Stoics, moral virtue
is the only good, and wickedness is the only evil.' In this case, the child's death is not an evil in
itself. There is nothing, therefore, for the virtuous person to regret since in being virtuous, he
must have already done his best.

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The Stoic Morality
From the concept of the human drama, what, then, is a good deed? What is now the
meaning of virtue? When is a person considered to be virtuous?
The foundation of Stoic morality is a doctrine that has its own basis in physics, i.e., in the
nature of living beings. This is the doctrine of  (oikeiösis). This term is difficult to
translate as it has no direct English equivalent. But it can be considered as related to the meaning
of the terms "orientation" and "appropriation" (Sellars 2006, 107). Diogenes quoted Chrysippus
when he said that an animal's first impulse is to self-preservation because Nature from the outset
endears it (Kenny 2004, 280). The basic desire of all living beings, including human beings, is for
self-preservation. The one thing that is most important to human persons is our own existence
and its continuation. People choose what they think will be good for them and avoid what they
think will be bad for them. This seemingly selfish attitude is the basis of Stoic ethics.
The Stoics held that people should learn to live in accordance with nature. Living in
agreement with nature was equivalent to living according to virtue. Their best known, and most
frequently criticized moral tenet was that virtue alone was necessary and sufficient for
happiness. Virtue was not only the final end and the supreme good: it was also the only real •
good (Kenny, 282).
For the Stoics, virtue means living according to reason, and reason tells us that all that
happens must happen in order to actuate a superior good willed by the Divine Nature. In this
regard, a human person is virtuous if he wishes that those events that will happen will be
according to the will of the Divine Providence.
Besides the human reason, there is in the human person passions and emotions. These
passions and emotions are irrational elements or vices and must, therefore, be eradicated in
order to complete the domination of reason and to avoid every surprise. If this complete
domination of reason cannot be retained, the stoic will have to recourse to suicide; for, according
to them, it is better to flee life than to lose the tranquility of spirit.
Stoic morality is focused on an absolute renunciation of things. The Stoic renounces all the
temporal goods because these cause disturbance of the mind. Since the Stoic does not believe
in the immortality of the soul, such complete renunciation can be made only for a selfish motive
so as not to lose the tranquility of the spirit. For this reason, while Christian morality is based on
humility and charity, the ethics of the Stoics is based on egotistical pride.
What is the Stoics' concept of justice? Inasmuch as everyone in this world has a role to play,
there is, therefore, the great significance in the human relations since each person shared a
common element. The Stoics held that there is a great connection between god and all the
people, as well as the people among each other because everyone is sharing a common
possession: reason. Because everyone has a reason, they, therefore have also the right reason
in common. But this right reason is Law. In this case, all men have this Law in common with the
gods.
Moreover, those who share law must also share justice, and those who share justice are to
be regarded as members of the same commonwealth. It IS for this reason that it became
inevitable for the Stoics to develop a strong notion of cosmopolitanism, i.e., the idea that all
persons are citizens of the same human community. According to the Stoics, every human
person is acting on a universal brotherhood. Hence, every human person is equal to one another.
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Therefore, depriving others of their rights is against the concept of cosmopolitanism; hence,
morally unacceptable.
Although stoicism shared many of the characteristics of Epicureanism, it had made some
radical innovations. For instance, with the Epicureans' focus on pleasure, the Stoics put their
chief concern upon the practical concerns of ethics. They regard self-control as the center of
ethics and they view all of nature in materialistic terms.

Diogenes is said to have always been carrying a lantern because he said he was
searching for one honest man.

The most significant variation injected by the Stoics was that they viewed the world not as
the product of chance but as the product of an ordering mind, or by reason. This View involved
the stoics in a highly optimistic attitude regarding the possibilities of human wisdom.
One may consider stoicism as a mature philosophy because its appeal seems to increase in
experience. For the Stoics, growing up emotionally and philosophically involves adopting
realistic expectations and accepting one's limits. The Stoics considered hardships and sufferings
as not totally negative. For instance, they may consider the logos as a parent or a teacher. If the
students would be able to understand that the best teachers are strictest with those pupils at
home, they see the most ability that they would be able to realize that the teacher is not bad
after all. The Stoics kept on reminding its followers that suffering cannot be bad by nature, or
else good. men, like Socrates, would not have suffered. In other words, who am I that I should
escape the ordinary trials of life. The goal, therefore, is not really to avoid the trials and sufferings
but to use them to become a good person.
In order to summarize the point of the Stoics, one can follow thus: while making reasonable
efforts to get what we want, it is wise to learn to be happy with what we get (Socio, 221).
Critique on Stoicism
Stoic philosophy upholds the idea of submission to the will of the Divine Providence. It can
be considered as a naturalistic philosophy due to its belief that one should learn to follow the
will of the Divine Nature, which is considered by the Stoics as the Divine Director of the human
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drama. This idea, if followed, may lead to idleness on the pretext that if everything is already
dictated by the Divine Director, then there is no need for a person to work hard in order to
achieve success in life. Accordingly, if it is willed by the Divine Director that one will be able to
finish his studies, then he would. However, if it is not willed, then no matter how hard he will try,
he will still not be able to obtain it.
At the same time, learning to be happy with what one gets may indeed lead to contentment.
Such contentment may have a positive and a negative effect. On the positive side, one will be
able to accept one's fate and not feel bad should there be failures. However, on the negative
side, being contented may lead one to just rely on one's fate.

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