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In Today’s society, Stoicism seems to be a valid and logical option to cope with current affairs and issues, now, more than ever we are living in a fast-paced world, in which we are subjected to different pressures and expectations from everyone in different settings (e.g.: Academic, professional and personal). It teaches that people can develop self-control and overcome destructive emotions by becoming clear thinkers, thus enabling us to do what is right through the practice of virtue. I will summarize the nine core stoic beliefs (Hanselman) as follows:
- If You Want a Smooth Flow of Life, Live According to Nature
- Happiness Is not Found in Things, but in Virtue Alone – It is All About What We Value and the Choices We Make
- We Do not Control External Events, We Only Control Our Thoughts, Opinions, Decisions and Duties
- We’ve Each Been Given All the Inner Resources We Need to Thrive
- We Must Eliminate Toxic Emotions – Why Hope, Fear, and Anger are Always the Worst Strategies
- We Are and Must Remain a Unified Self – We Cannot Complain or Blame Anyone Else (Best to Deal with Our Own Demons)
- No Man Is an Island: The Stoic Golden Rule
- Our Personal Development is Bound Up in Cooperation with Others
- Persist and Resist: It is All about Progress, Not Perfection
I personally relate to 3, 4, 5 and 9 and I will explain why in a second. At the same time, stoicism is quite logical hence it is expected to see its propositions and syllogistic. According to (Durand, M., Shogry, S & Baltzly D., 2023) syllogisms are arguments that take the form of one of the five so-called “indemonstrables”, which are axiomatic arguments, or can be reduced to one by means of one of four rules of inference, the themata. The five indemonstrables are familiar argument forms presented in the following abbreviated way (Diogenes Laertius, 36Α, cf. Sextus, M 8.224–5, where “the first” and “the second” are used in place of p and q, following standard Stoic practice):
- if p then q; p; therefore q (modus ponens);
- if p then q; not-q; therefore not-p (modus tollens);
- not: both p and q; p; therefore not-q;
- either p or q; p; therefore not-q;
- either p or q; not-p; therefore q.
The reason I relate to 3, 4, 5 and 9 is because:
- We are born having nothing and we will not take with us anything either. Everything is temporary and that is a fact.
- Everyone has a skill or ability of some sort to thrive, but not everyone wants to do it though
- This is so true, toxic emotions and people. Be and remain factual and fear nothing. Fear cannot control us, so we must manage it. Fear of loss can affect our sense of self and identity (2023), but one needs to be realistic about this, how can anyone regret having lost, let us say, a relationship for example if one of the parties involved never had any true feelings or felt any love toward the other?
- This is so true. It is about keep going no matter what. If we fall, we must get up. No time to whine, cry or wonder about what ifs. Life is too short to spend it thinking on what could have been scenarios.
I would like to share some of my Favorite quotes by famous stoics.
- “If anyone tells you that a certain person speaks ill of you, do not make excuses about what is said of you but answer, “He was ignorant of my other faults, else he would not have mentioned these alone.” ― Epictetus
- “There is only one way to happiness and that is to cease worrying about things which are beyond the power or our will.” ― Epictetus
- “It’s not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters.” ― Epictetus
- “Freedom is the only worthy goal in life. It is won by disregarding things that lie beyond our control.” ― Epictetus
- “Circumstances don’t make the man; they only reveal him to himself.” ― Epictetus
- “Other people’s views and troubles can be contagious. Don’t sabotage yourself by unwittingly adopting negative, unproductive attitudes through your associations with others.” ― Epictetus
- “Remember, it is not enough to be hit or insulted to be harmed, you must believe that you are being harmed. If someone succeeds in provoking you, realize that your mind is complicit in the provocation. Which is why it is essential that we do not respond impulsively to impressions; take a moment before reacting, and you will find it easier to maintain control.” ― Epictetus
There are a bunch of resources on stoicism and quotes on the Internet, so I would like to encourage you to look for them if you want to learn more.
In summary, one can only control certain things being our reaction one of them, and it is all about keeping composure and living a happier life.
References:
- Durand, M., Shogry, S & Baltzly D. (2023). Stoicism. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.
- Hanselman, S. The 9 Core Stoic Beliefs. DailyStoic.com
- Lamia, M. (2023). How Loss Changes Us… and how to begin living fully again. Psychology Today.