How to Be a Stoic: Ancient Wisdom for Modern Living
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Average rating3.7
An engaging guide to how Stoicism--the ancient philosophy of Epictetus and Marcus Aurelius--can provide lessons for living in the modern world. Whenever we worry about what to eat, how to love, or simply how to be happy, we are worrying about how to lead a good life. No goal is more elusive. In How to Be a Stoic, philosopher Massimo Pigliucci offers Stoicism, the ancient philosophy that inspired the great emperor Marcus Aurelius, as the best way to attain it. Stoicism is a pragmatic philosophy that teaches us to act depending on what is within our control and separate things worth getting upset about from those that are not. By understanding Stoicism, we can learn to answer crucial questions: Should we get married or divorced? How should we bank in a world nearly destroyed by a financial crisis? How can we survive great personal tragedy? Whoever you are, Stoicism has something for you-and How to Be a Stoic is your essential guide.
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It's hard to distinguish between my view of Stoicism and the book itself. The writing is generally good although a little repetitive. I found the imagined conversations with Epictetus to be both jarring and creepy. I was very off-put by the Stoic denial of Evil. As for the author's belief in Evolution, look up two things: Cambrian Explosion and Protein Folding.
Beautifully broken down into chapters of ideal length and coverage of the right topics.
Mr. Pigliucci seems to be so knowledgeable, as to be able to present many complex ideas simply.
He also compares all Hellenistic schools.
