Z

August  26th

SEEKING OUT SHIPWRECKS

“I  was shipwrecked before  I   even    boarded .   .   .   the journey showed  me  this—how    much    of  what

we  have    is  unnecessary,    and how easily  we  can decide  to  rid ourselves   of  these   things  whenever

it’s    necessary,  never   suffering   the loss.”

—SENECA,    MORAL   LETTERS,    87.1

eno, widely considered to be the founder of the school of Stoicism, was a merchant before he was a
philosopher. On a voyage between Phoenicia and Peiraeus, his ship sank along with its cargo. Zeno
ended up in Athens, and while visiting a bookstore he was introduced to the philosophy of Socrates and,
later, an Athenian philosopher named Crates. These influences drastically changed the course of his life,
leading him to develop the thinking and principles that we now know as Stoicism. According to the
ancient biographer Diogenes Laertius, Zeno joked, “Now that I’ve suffered shipwreck, I’m on a good
journey,” or according to another account, “You’ve done well, Fortune, driving me thus to philosophy,” he
reportedly said.
The Stoics weren’t being hypothetical when they said we ought to act with a reverse clause and that
even the most unfortunate events can turn out to be for the best. The entire philosophy is founded on that
idea!