Self-Discipline: Epictetis

Epictetus paints God as the creator, director, and all knowing being. Our existence comes from God himself. His (God's) laws for the universe are followed and served by all in existence, including our bodies. Rebelling by reason against that which is in full control will only cause us suffering or pain.

Epictetus believes that all beings are connected through God and influenced by him, his example is that of the trees and their cycles. This goes even to human affairs - influencing our understand, giving us patience, and even memories. God influences and knows all, something that we can't do. That said, God gave us control of ourselves but he is present within us as our existence is of him - so our actions are those of God's in a sense. We need to be aware that he is part of us so that we can respect God with pure thoughts and actions. You should be ashamed if you can't act and think properly as God is seeing, hearing, and partaking with your thoughts.

Epictetus address the mentality that we are individuals with great futures with the reality that we are part of an integrated whole - a whole where we will not have perfect lives but will partake in the existence of the whole. This is what make us man - being part of a whole from which God is the connection - a citizen of the universe that takes part and has the opportunity to help the divineness of all existence. A citizen who holds no private interest. If we knew what was going to happen, we would happily accept ills of sickness, pain, and death as it is all part of the laws and dictations of God, and being part of the whole is better than being an individual. Of course, we don't know whats going to happen so we should live for what is better for us, as this too is a gift of God.

For our existence we should be thankful to God but even more so, we should be thankful for the ability to control what we have - will power. It is not the most amazing thing that our eyes can open and our legs move, but that we have the power to control and move them. There is nothing greater than this control, will. Besides physical actions, our will is what allows us to make good ethical, virtuous, and decent actions. That said, our will is also what allows us to make unethical, wicked, and indecent actions. Because of this Epictetus says that will is the ultimate source of both Vice and Virtue. 

Epictetus attacks Epicurus's claim that matter is the most excellent thing in existence. Going back to the eye and leg analogy, the fact that it exists does not matter - without will it wouldn't do anything. The fact that will control's what exists points to this. Epictetus also points to the fact that something made of matter is always greater than some other thing made of matter.

To avoid frustration and suffering we need to understand what is and isn't under our power or control. We can control ourselves. We can't control everything else. Trying to take control of that which is not yours only leads to trouble and problems with other men and God. Focus on what you have control of rather than that you do not, such as power and wealth. Do not shun what you can't control as it brings no good or desire what is out of reach, rather desire what is within your power for then you can obtain it and achieve happiness. But remember not to forget discretion, gentleness, and moderation in that quest for what you desire.

When you can accept what is unavoidable will live a life of moderation and harmony as they will not be fighting against what God has set in motion. You have control, in the drama of life in how to act. What your role is has been set by God but the action you take are yours. Evil things are to be avoided but if death isn't avoidable Epictetus implies that it can't be evil. What we can escape is the dread of death. There is no reason that we must die in fear as we can control our reaction to death. We are not disturbed by event and things but by our views that we take of the events. We should not wish for things not to come but accept that they will come when they come and there is no point in worrying about them until they happen.

Once we rid life of lamentation, regret, and complaints then life will be better. Dwelling on the pains of others and yourself only creates more pain. Don't view the hardships as painful and the pain is removed. When it concerns pleasure, Epictetus calls for self control. He brings up the point that if you are going to indulge in any pleasure that will make you "repent and reproach yourself" then it is more joyful to make the decision to not go through those negative emotions than it to go through the pleasure at that time. Control your passions so that they don't control you. "It belongs to a wise man to resist pleasure; and to a fool to be enslaved by it."

Epictetus brings up the point that when we lose something external we should consider what we still have. If it is more valuable than what we lost, then don't consider yourself at loss. Time spend missing that loss will be time in vain. Seek your own highest good.

To be a wise and good person Epictetus calls for three things. Not being disappointed by our desires or our aversions. We should act carefully with order and considere in our pursuits and avoidances. Lastly, we need to be prudent and keep our integrity. 

Discussion Questions/Comments

Does Epictetus believe that God is completely omnipresent within everything or just people?

I don't follow the end of #3. It feels like he is saying to be selfish and want good for ourselves...he means this in an unselfish way - good heath, peace, and happiness - right? I can't see his meaning lining up any other way.

I find it interesting that he says our body is out of our control, as we can exercise and eat healthy to help the impact the condition of our body. Sounds more like he is talking about how we can't stop what is "fate" or dictated by God to happen in the future. 

Key Terms/Definitions 

Will: the ultimate source of both Vice and Virtue

Omnipresent: (of God) present everywhere at the same time

The Pleasant Life: Epicurus

Epicurus starts by telling us the fundamental laws of nature, nothing is created out of nothing and nothing can be destroyed to nothing. These laws hold true for all the universe. Atoms will always move and collide through the universe without destruction, providing stability and permanence to the world around us. The narrator informs us that these laws support his argument that only natural causes operate in the world.

Epicurus would like us to consider that our soul is made of atoms held within the body and that these atoms are what lead to our being able to feel sensations, but without the body no sensations would;ve ever been felt. When the soul leaves the body all sensation is lost. The soul is indestructible by nature because it is made of atoms. Because there is no sensation with the body separated from the soul it is impossible to conceive there is an incorporeal existence, as the soul would have no sense of the world around it.

When it comes to higher powers, Epicurus did not deny their existence, but he believes that they hold no true power. Instead he believes that the function of scientific nature is responsible for all phenomena that occurs. He says that God is blessed and immortal - an existence that knows no trouble and causes no trouble, as anger and favor only exist in the weak. Death for people is nothing - it is only the loss of sensation. Understanding that death is nothing, allowing the morality of life to be enjoyable. It is the anticipation of death that is painful, not the death itself. We should seek the most pleasant life possible.

Epicurus breaks down the desires into two parts, the vain and the natural. The natural can either be natural or necessary, with the necessary being either necessary for happiness, the body, or for very life. Unhappiness is the product of fear or vain desires. Natural desires are physical desires. When it comes to unlimited desires, nothing can bring joy as they are unobtainable. Nature is not to be denied, so follow desires and the physical (natural). By follwing nature and not vain opinions (desires?) 

Difficulties arrise from forgetting nature, which in turns means you create fear and unreachable desires. Epicurus says that what is obtainable is necessary and what is unnecessary, thankfully, unobtainable. When we understand this, we can protect the soul and the health of the body by avoiding pain and fear.

When we desire pleasure then we create pain in its absence. When we don't need pleasure then we no longer experience pain. Epicurus says that pleasure is the start and end to a blessed life - our initial pleasure, an innate good, helps us to judge all other good in the world.

He goes on to claim that prudent people understand good things are easy to obtain and fulfill ones life, while bad things are short lived and few, just like extreme pleasures. He goes on, destiny is nothing as only man has the true power to impact events, whether out of necessity, chance or by our control. Chance can not be a god, as gods acts have no disorder. Making a decision based off of reason and having an unfortunate outcome is better than relying on chance to give good outcomes. 

Epicurus believes that Justice is created by nature to stop people from harming each other and to provide a mutual advantage for everyone. Justice acts as a pact not to hurt others, when beings are unable to make this pact their actions can't be just or unjust. Injustice is not the source of evil, only the fears that stem from injustice are evil. Laws that effect interactions by adding advantage to man's interaction are just.

When talking about safety, Epicurus believes that removing oneself from community, at large, is the best way to obtain safety. Friendship helps to truly have a blessed life. He concludes that the safest and most full life is obtainable by keeping company with others that have also shed most of their ties with society at large. This allows for better safety and for the fewer friendships, I assume, to be stronger and more rewarding.

Despite his call to protect oneself no one can escape death. You can only protect yourself against "fortune" by anticipating how to avoid "fortune", assuming he means accidents or acts of harm against you. By following his words, he believes that people will live good lives and not fear death as they will have already had a good life. People who listen to him are always trying to live a better life throughout their lifetime and in doing so should be happy and content when they must leave this earth.

By living such a pure life with a few people one should be surrounded by immortal blessings during life and a life lived like an immortal and with others that act immortal will not be like a mortal being.

Discussion Questions/Comments

What influenced Epicuris to believe that only nature influences our world?

What does #3 have to do with happiness - I didn't see anything about happiness, but it was mentioned in the narrator intro to the section....

I never thought of death in the way that Epicuris did. Kind of funny though, as it is true. The problem is that we live such long lives now days that death is often a lot slower than it used to be. 

Does Epicurus mean vain desires when he says "vain opinions?"

I thought his imagery of the "draught of life and death" was particularly interesting to me. I thought it was a really great way to portray our lives (and then death) as deal already taken from our getting to exist.

Key Terms/Definitions

Justice: the dealings of man with one another at every time, making a pact not to hurt one another

Contravention: an act that violates law, treaty, or other ruling

Intrinsic: belonging naturally; essential 

Moral Character: Aristotle

Aristotle believes that all actions and questions are done for the purpose of some sort of good. If there is something that we desire something that fulfills itself, an ultimate end, then this thing must be good and the chief good. This chief good should have an influence on the rest of how we live our lives as we aim for this target. Politics, ethics and social philosophy, should have this quality. Aristotle also believes that reaching this good for a nation or state is greater than reaching it for an individual - I assume because it will positively impact the whole nation of people rather than just the individual. 

Aristotle believes that good and just actions, guided by politics, are achieved through convention rather than by nature. This causes him to conclude that the best people for politics are those who are educated about them and have the most experience with them. Having a less experienced person create ideals is foolish as they are more likely to be flawed. People are good judges of what they know - making the young bad to get political advice from.

Aristotle says that most people hold the opinion that happiness is the chief good that people aim for. Aristotle identifies a person's chief good as the single end result that we pursue. We must remember that ends are not always final ends. One end often leads to another and then another, therefore there can only be one final end - something that is desirable in itself and never for the sake of something else. Happiness is the end and final result of many of the virtues we have. Aristotle says the final good should also be self-sufficient - fulfilling when isolated and lacking nothing.

Aristotle defines happiness as coming from a complete life full of activity of the soul, a rational principle, in accordance with virtue (the best virtue possible). This must be throughout the entire life, not just one day, hence the use of "complete life." Human virtue, that of the soul, depends on the structure of the soul. Each soul is made of two different parts, the irrational and the rational principle.

Aristotle says that two virtues, intellect and morality, correspond to reason. One of the reasons that he says virtues can't be created by nature is that our virtues tend to come from habits, and we cannot create a habit that is contrary to our nature making the source of morality convention. The only way we an become skilled in an area is by performing that medium, moral actions being performed leads to better moral actions/behavior (habits).

Aristotle breaks the human personality into three elements: passions, faculties, and sates of character. He believes that morality comes from states of character as passions and faculties are not, in themselves, worthy of praise. Being a state of character it makes man good and makes his work good too. For us to do this we must seek the intermediate that is correct for what is right.

He finally defines virtue as a state of character concerned with choice involving a mean between excess and defect in what is right. We use rational principle to help us decide. When there is excess fearlessness (a mean) we get rashness, but under doing it and we get a coward. Temperance can become self-indulgence and lacking, a person could be called "insensible." Liberality becomes prodigality or meanness.

The intellectual virtues, ones that exercise reason, have the task of give us knowledge of the world around us and to help provide a rational guide for action throughout our day. Virtues show that we have practical wisdom, not forms of practical wisdom as Socrates would have us believe.

Aristotle wishes people choose activities based on how good they are not based on the amount of pleasure that they produce. A good activity will have pleasure, but pleasure does not necessarily produce goodness - making the good activity better than the pleasurable one.

Happiness aligns with virtue, so we should seek the highest of virtues. If our activity is in accordance with this highest virtue than we should find the perfect happiness. Aristotle believes that philosophic wisdom is the pleasant of virtuous activities. A man who seeks and contemplates truth becomes self-sufficient. We work so that we may have free time and we make war so that we may have peace.

If we live lives that are full of reason that is best and pleasantest we will live the happiest of lives, as reason is human.

Discussion Questions/Comments

I find it interesting that Aristotle believe that "true student of politics wishes to make his fellow citizens good and obedient to the laws." I want to know how he is defining laws. Is he talking virtue? If he is I feel that "obedient" is an odd word choice as you should want people to adopt virtues and make them their own, not follow because they must be "obedient."

I didn't really follow what Aristotle was trying to say about the rational and irrational principles of the soul in #7. Could you clear that up please?

What is he talking about with picking the "intermediate?" I understand what he is saying...just not why he is talking about it. Was it only so he could connect it to the 'mean of character?'

Can you have excess "right"? Wouldn't that just be a more moral, just, and good world? Or are we talking about when a virtue becomes a vice?

I don't understand what he means when he says that "philosophic wisdom is the pleasant of virtuous activities." Does he mean virtuous actions or the process of thinking about/creating morals?

Key Terms/Definitions

Teleology: the explaining of phenomena by the purpose they serve rather than by the postulated causes
Politics (Aristotle): ethics and social philosophy
Self-sufficient (Aristotle): fulfilling when isolated and lacking nothing


Analogous: comparable in certain respects, typically in a way that makes clearer the nature of the things compared
Defect: a shortcoming, imperfection, or lack
Prodigality: spending money and resources freely and recklessly