Stoicism in Ancient Rome Essay

Born of different backgrounds, upbringings, and experiences, Epictetus and Seneca are Roman philosophers who outwardly appear very different. Epictetus spent most of his youth as a slave while Seneca was born into money and became a tutor of Nero. Although these two men seem to be very dissimilar, they each shared a common purpose in studying philosophy and teaching people on how to live well. Each suggested different paths for how to do so. Epictetus suggests in his book, The Discourses and The Enchiridion, that living a life in accordance with nature could be achieved by living moderately. Seneca suggests in his work, Letters from a Stoic, that a happy man is self-sufficient and realizes that happiness depends only on interior perfection. Despite the differences, both Epictetus and Seneca are considered Stoics because of their shared belief in the idea that character is the only guarantee of everlasting, carefree happiness. The world outside ourselves will never give us happiness, nor will it be responsible for our unhappiness. It doesn’t matter what’s happening outside ourselves, Epictetus and Seneca claim that the only thing that matters is how we interpret those events. Further evaluating Seneca’s, Letters from a Stoic and Epictetus’s, The Discourses and The Enchiridion, we will clearly be able to differentiate the two in their ideas and opinions regarding stoicism and the keys to living a well, happy life.

The rise and fall of one of the greatest empires known to man, the Roman republic, were caused by several key factors. Three of which were the decline of monarchy within the empire, foreign conquests and expansion of the growing empire, and political battles between powerful officials.

If I were a noble man then surely I would not even question my Roman faith, however, since I am lost in a sea of middle class laborers I could contemplate Christianity. Word of Christianity spreads slowly in rural communities and I have only heard pieces of this new religion when I travel into the city. The middle class has clearly grown throughout the years with the decrease in population that participates in government affairs. This leads to a skewed distribution of wealth to the minority of individuals. It also seems as though both men and women have both been straying from tradition and normality. However, I would lose the ability to practice my faith openly in the community because the authorities wouldn’t like that Christians view public affairs as meaningless. The emperor would think I am not loyal because I would participate in his army of killers, yet I would be loyal to a man I call king

Seneca was the personal advisor of Nero during his reign. He was a stoic philosopher who played a vital role in the running of the empire. Seneca contributed in many aspects of Nero’s reign by introducing reforms, bringing stoicism into practice and playing a key role in the senate. Seneca aided in important decision-making. He led Nero down an appropriate path, particularly when Nero became extremely erratic. He served Nero well and made an excellent contribution during his reign.

The legions, the auxiliaries, and the Praetorian Guard made up the army. The legions consisted of Roman citizens. They had doctors, surveyors, and engineers. Their main focus was the military, but they also built roads, aqueducts, walls, and tunnels. The auxiliaries consisted of noncitizens and fought along with the legions. The Praetorian Guard were the emperor’s personal bodyguard. They were an elite group of soldiers.

the inventor of the bridle, the trumpet, the flute, the pot, the rake, the plow,

A myth about the founding of Rome was the story of Romulus and Remus. Romulus and Remus were brothers who were said to be sons of Mars, a Roman god. They both wanted to build a city, but they fought over where to build it. Romulus killed Remus and built the city of Rome. This is important to the Roman culture because to be remembered you need to have shared

Exposing the doomed nature of humanity and the world itself, Stoic beliefs, presented through the complex yet unstoppable perception of time perceived by Dr. Manhattan, simultaneously act with the attempted attainment of becoming a Stoic Sage, confirming the fated disposition held by the world. Following the ideas of Stoicism perfectly, Dr. Manhattan’s withheld actions despite his ability to see time on a simultaneous serves as proof that the ill-fated outcome of the world is predetermined. Becoming the most complex character of the novel, Dr. Manhattan’s contribution of all aspects of time distinguished on one plane of existence work to expose the Stoic nature of the universe, especially seen when exiled to Mars. Upon entering Mars, Manhattan

In the age of Augustus myth played a large role in Roman identity, with myths being used to justify alliances and political activities. The search for a common mythological ancestor amongst cities or countries offered a sense of legitimacy to the alliances that were struck because of these links. On a smaller scale, Romans sought to find familial links that meant that they were more qualified to make a decision, and Augustus was no exception to this. Augustus’ family were an old and distinguished family, however were not patrician, and he was ashamed of the fact that his great-grandfather was an ex-slave, the lowest on the social chain in Rome. In order to justify his leadership, and offer a more glamourous family background Augustus worked hard to establish his and Julius Caesar’s link to the Prince of Troy, Aeneas. Not only that, but Augustus was focused on establishing divine familial ties,

Born of different stations, languages and creeds, Epictetus and Seneca are Roman philosophers who externally appear to be very different. Epictetus was born to a slave mother, sold as a slave himself and spent the majority of his youth as a slave in Rome. Seneca was born into money; he became tutor to a boy named Nero who later acquired position of Emperor of Rome in 54 A.D. Though these two men seem to be from very different worlds, they have a shared purpose in studying philosophy. The purpose of their writings was to teach people how to live well. Though they had a shared purpose, they suggested its achievement through different means. Epictetus professed an ‘expect the worst so you wont be disappointed when it happens’

An example of a Roman philosophical work was written by a notable Roman philosopher, Marcus Aurelius, the emperor of Rome, who propagated Stoic ideas in his work

Stoicism emerged in Hellenistic Greece as a new way of reasoning. A way of fulfilling one’s spiritual duty. It quickly became one of the most important Post Classical Greek philosophies. For the purpose of my analysis, I have focused on the period 100 BC to 100 CE. During that time period, Stoicism became extremely influential in the Roman Empire. It was no longer just a Greek school; it became a semi-official Philosophy for the Roman elite. Throughout this time period, Christianity also began to emerge. Through influential missionaries, like Saint Paul (10-67 CE), Christianity began to spread and gain recognition, despite the fact that the Roman Empire was predominately pagan during the first century. Ironically, many early Christian

Stoics believe a good life is one filled with virtue; a life that goes along with the natural order of the universe. A life that goes along with nature must also go along with rationality because Stoics consider them one and the same. Since the Stoics believe nature and the universe have a determined order and structure, thinking with rationally in verse with this natural order will lead to the virtuous and tranquil life. Most of all, a good Stoic should live a virtuous life. Stoics spend their whole lives trying to achieve this virtuous life and Seneca explains what one should do in order to do so. Seneca defines how one’s thought process should be like in order to obtain this virtuous life the Stoics desire. By doing the rational thing as

The first chronicled Roman who was classically trained in Epicureanism is Titus Albucius, a member of the upper class living around 100 B.C.E. who spent his youth studying philosophy and oration in Athens. Albucius grew fond of Epicureanism and declared himself a devotee of the school; however, after reaching adulthood, Albucius returned to Rome to follow the cursus honorum, eventually ending up as praetor of a province. After being exiled, Albucius went back to Athens and fully dedicated himself to Epicureanism by abandoning the political life entirely. Indeed, a seemingly innocuous

After Stoicism arose in the fourth century BCE in ancient Greece, the beliefs and practices of Stoicism quickly spread among wealthy, educated, and governing classes of Rome. Although there is little evidence that Stoicism widely impacted all the classes of Rome, Stoicism did have a profound effect on the wealthy and governing classes of Rome because of influential Stoics and their encouragement to participate in government affairs. Although certain Stoic philosophers such as Epictetus tried to spread Stoicism to the less wealthy classes of Rome, these attempts did not sway the fact that wealthy Romans most largely studied Stoicism. Furthermore, very few people outside of the wealthy and educated classes of Rome knew much about Stoicism and