Experiments in Stoicism

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Experiments in Stoicism. or Apathy on the Porch as the Good Life. ἀνέχου καὶ ἀπέχου. “ All philosophy lies in two words, “Bear and Forebear”. Stoicism. Figures in Stoicism. Eudaimonia. What is the Good Life? What is the end ( telos ) of human existence? What is happiness? - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Transcript of Experiments in Stoicism

Page 1: Experiments in Stoicism
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Experiments in Stoicism

or

Apathy on the Porch as the Good Life

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ἀνέχου καὶ

ἀπέχου“All philosophy lies in two words,

“Bear and Forebear”

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Eudaimonistic ethical system in the Socratic traditionArose in dialogue with Cynicism, Epicureanism, Platonism, and Aristotelianism

Popular and influential

Stoicism

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Figures in Stoicism

Mar

cus A

urel

ius

Anto

ninu

sZe

no

Chry

sippu

sEp

ictet

us

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Eudaimonia

What is the Good Life?What is the end (telos) of human existence?

What is happiness?

"eu" ("good") and "daimon" ("spirit")“flourishing” “blessedness”

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Aristotle

• A well ordered life as a whole

Epicureanism• Ataraxia • ("tranquility")• freedom from

distress and worry

Stoicism• Ataraxia and

apatheia• (a- "without"

and pathos "suffering" or "passion")

• equanimity

The eudaimon life is…

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Stoicism’s simplified list:

Fame Wealth Power Beauty Life Pleasure etc.

What is good?

Only

Virtueis good.

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Stoicism’s simplified list:

Notoriety Poverty Weakness Ugliness Death Pain etc.

What is evil?

Only

Viceis evil.

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Anything else, whether preferred or rejected,

appropriate or inappropriate, cannot affect true eudaimonia, true happiness.

Fame or NotorietyWealth or PovertyPower or WeaknessBeauty or UglinessLife or DeathPleasure or Pain

What is indifferent?Everything else

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?

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Stoic Assumptions

Physics• Dynamic

materialism and determinism

• Rational element within nature and within humanity

Logic• All knowledge is

based on sense impressions

• Reason can abstract hidden causes (Socratic method)

Ethics• Rational, social

animals• Moral character

grows with reason (appropriation)

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ἀνέχου καὶ

ἀπέχου“There are things which are within our power, and there are things which are

beyond our power. Within our power are opinion, aim, desire, aversion, and, in one

word, whatever affairs are our own.

“Beyond our power are body, property, reputation, office, and, in one word, whatever are not properly our own

affairs.”Epictetus

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“Now, the things within our power are by nature free, unrestricted, unhindered; but those beyond our power are weak, dependent, restricted, alien.

…if you attribute freedom to things by nature dependent, you will be hindered, you will lament, you will be disturbed, you will find fault both with gods and men…”

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“But if you take for your own only that which is your own, and view what belongs to others just as it really is, then no one will ever compel you, no one will restrict you, you will find fault with no one, you will accuse no one, you will do nothing against your will;

no one will hurt you, you will not have an enemy, nor will you suffer any harm.”

Epictetus, The Handbook

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Covey’s virtue ethic

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Stoic virtue ethic

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What is meant by “passion”?

What we call “emotions”?“Animal instincts”?Pleasure or pain itself?

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Not sensations

Pleasure Pain

Not pre-emotions (propatheia) Eros

Not good feelings (eupatheia) joy (chara) caution (eulabeia) wish (boulêsis)

PassionsGreek: pathê; Latin: perturbationes.

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Passions are false

judgments

Delight(present)

Lust(future)

Distress(present)

Fear(future)

Four Main

Passions

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Delight (Greek: hêdonê; Latin: laetitia.)• disorder arising from presence of [an

apparent] good; exuberant transport at having secured some coveted object

Distress (Greek: lupê. Latin: aegritudo.)• disorder originating in distress at

present evil

Passions pt.1

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Lust (Greek: epithumia; Latin: libido.)• belief of prospective good and the

subject of this thinks it advantageous to possess it at once upon the spot.

Fear (Greek: phobos; Latin: metus.)• a disorder arising from expectation of

evil

Passions pt.2

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Comparisons

Passions Perturbation of

character (Zeno) Distorts sense of

reality

Neuroses Distortion of

personality (Hine, 1983)

Distorts sense of reality

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Passions replaced by good

states

Joy instead of Delight

(present)

Wish instead of Lust

(future)

…(nothing)… instead of Distress(present)

Caution instead of Fear

(future)

Three Good States

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?

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How?

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The Three Disciplinesof Epictetus

Discipline of Desire

• Study of philosophy, science, and theology

• “View from above”

• Amor fati

Discipline of Assent

• Uncover implicit value judgments

• Meditation on misfortune

• Stoic mindfulness (prosochê)

Discipline of Action

• Cultivation of cardinal virtues

• Reserve clause (God willing)

• Oikeiôsis and cosmopolitanism

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Cognitive Behavioral and Rational Emotive

TherapiesAlbert Ellis and Aaron Beck explicitly drew on Stoic sources

in devising a therapeutic school apart from psychodynamic and behavioral traditions.

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Cognitive therapy assumes that maladaptive behaviors

and disturbed mood or emotions are the result of inappropriate or irrational thinking patterns, called automatic thoughts.

Therapy may consist of testing the assumptions which one makes and identifying how certain of one's usually unquestioned thoughts are distorted, unrealistic and unhelpful. Once those thoughts have been challenged, one's feelings about the subject matter of those thoughts are more easily subject to change.

Assumptions

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Overgeneralization

Mental Filter Magnification and Minimization All-or-Nothing Thinking Disqualifying the Positive

Jumping to Conclusions Labeling Mind Reading Fortune Telling

Emotional Reasoning Shoulding Yourself, Shoulding Others Personalization and Blame

Common Cognitive Biases

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Four steps: Identification of problematic cognitions known as "automatic thoughts" (ATs)

which are dysfunctional or negative views of the self, world, or future Identification of the cognitive distortions in the ATs Rational disputation of ATs with the Socratic method. Development of a rational rebuttal to the ATs

Six types of automatic thoughts: Self-evaluated thoughts Thoughts about the evaluations of others Evaluative thoughts about the other person with whom they are interacting Thoughts about coping strategies and behavioral plans Thoughts of avoidance Any other thoughts that were not categorized

Cognitive Restructuring

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Live Like a Stoic Week

http://blogs.exeter.ac.uk/stoicismtoday

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Download Handbook Fill out surveys:

“Satisfaction with Life” “Flourishing” “Positive and Negative Emotions” Stoic Attitudes and Behaviors

Preparation

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Morning Meditation Stoic Mindfulness throughout day Evening Meditation Blog about experiences

Stoic Week

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Fill out surveys again:

“Satisfaction with Life” “Flourishing” “Positive and Negative Emotions” “Stoic Attitudes and Behaviors”

Meet to discuss experience with others

End of week

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Philosophy for Life

http://philosophyforlife.org

Stoicism Today http://blogs.exeter.ac.uk/stoicismtoday

Philosophy of CBT http://philosophy-of-cbt.com

Resources