67
See also: Plato 50–55 ■ Aristotle 56–63 ■ Epicurus 64–65 ■ Diogenes of Sinope 66T
wo main schools of
philosophical thought
emerged after Aristotle’s
death. These were the hedonistic,
godless ethic of Epicurus, which
had limited appeal, and the more
popular and longer-lasting Stoicism
of Zeno of Citium.
Zeno studied with a disciple of
Diogenes of Sinope, the Cynic, and
shared his no-nonsense approach
to life. He had little patience with
metaphysical speculation and came
to believe that the cosmos was
governed by natural laws that were
ordained by a supreme lawgiver.
Man, he declares, is completely
powerless to change this reality,
and in addition to enjoying its
many benefits, man also has to
accept its cruelty and injustice.Free will
However, Zeno also declares that
man has been given a rational soul
with which to exercise free will.
No one is forced to pursue a “good”
life. It is up to the individual to
choose whether to put aside the
things over which he has little or nocontrol, and be indifferent to pain
and pleasure, poverty and riches.
But if a person does so, Zeno is
convinced that he will achieve a
life that is in harmony with nature
in all its aspects, good or bad, and
live in accordance with the rulings
of the supreme lawgiver.
Stoicism was to find favor across
much of Hellenistic Greece. But it
drew in even more followers in the
expanding Roman empire, where it
flourished as a basis for ethics—
both personal and political—until it
was supplanted by Christianity in
the 6th century. ■THE ANCIENT WORLD
IN CONTEXT
BRANCH
Ethics
APPROACH
Stoicism
BEFORE
c.380 BCE Plato states his
thoughts on ethics and the
city-state in The Republic.
4th century BCE Diogenes
of Sinope lives in extreme
poverty to demonstrate his
Cynic principles.
AFTER
c.40–45 CE Roman statesman
and philosopher Seneca the
Younger continues the Stoic
tradition in his Dialogues.
c.150–180 Roman emperor
Marcus Aurelius writes his
12-volume Meditations on
Stoic philosophy.
1584 Flemish humanist
Justus Lipsius writes De
Constantia, combining
Stoicism with Christianity to
found a school of Neo-Stoicism.
THE GOAL OF
LIFE IS LIVING
IN AGREEMENT
WITH NATURE
ZENO OF CITIUM (C.332–265 BCE)
Happiness is a good
flow of life.
Zeno of Citium