Product Description

Epictetus, a Greek stoic and freed slave, ran a thriving philosophy school in Nicropolis in the early second century AD. His animated discussions were celebrated for their rhetorical wizardry and were written down by Arrian, his most famous pupil. Together with the Enchiridion, a manual of his main ideas, and the fragments collected here, The Discourses argue that happiness lies in learning to perceive exactly what is in our power to change and what is not, and in embracing our fate to live in harmony with god and nature. In this personal, practical guide to the ethics of stoicism and moral self-improvement, Epictetus tackles questions of freedom and imprisonment, illness and fear, family, friendship and love, and leaves an intriguing document of daily life in the classical world.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #67922 in Books
• Published on: 2008-08-28
• Original language: Greek
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 304 pages

About the Author
Epictetus (c. 55–135 AD) was a teacher and Greco-Roman philosopher. Originally a slave from Hierapolis in Anatolia (modern Turkey), he was owned for a time by a prominent freedman at the court of the emperor Nero. After gaining his freedom he moved to Nicopolis on the Adriatic coast of Greece and opened a school of philosophy there. His informal lectures (the Discourses) were transcribed and published by his student Arrian, who also composed a digest of Epictetus' teaching known as the Manual (or Enchiridion).

Customer Reviews

One we should revisit
The morality of Greek philosophers was the antithesis of our modern one: they believed we should eschew all material desires, not because of some dictate of the heavens, but because they can never be satisfied and come to tyrannise us rather than make us happy. Like Epicurus, Epictetus believed that you had to implement your own philosophy so for his followers it became a quasi-religion. The quasi is justified by the fact that they never drifted away from rational thought. Read Epictetus on why we should not be angry when our neighbour steals from our house, and you will find his logic quite convincing.
His thoughts survive (mainly in the form written down by one of his students) because the Church found this Theistic philosopher acceptable, but he is now somewhat ignored.
This excellent new translation reads very well, and should encourage us to revisit this thinker.