How to Be Free: An Ancient Guide to the Stoic Life

How to Be Free: An Ancient Guide to the Stoic Life - Hardcover

$18.95
$18.95
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How to Be Free: An Ancient Guide to the Stoic Life
  • How to Be Free: An Ancient Guide to the Stoic Life
How to Be Free: An Ancient Guide to the Stoic Life - Hardcover

How to Be Free: An Ancient Guide to the Stoic Life - Hardcover

by Epictetus
$18.95
$18.95

Book Overview

A superb new edition of Epictetus's famed handbook on Stoicism--translated by one of the world's leading authorities on Stoic philosophy

Born a slave, the Roman Stoic philosopher Epictetus (c. 55-135 AD) taught that mental freedom is supreme, since it can liberate one anywhere, even in a prison. In How to Be Free, A. A. Long--one of the world's leading authorities on Stoicism and a pioneer in its remarkable contemporary revival--provides a superb new edition of Epictetus's celebrated guide to the Stoic philosophy of life (the Encheiridion) along with a selection of related reflections in his Discourses.

Freedom, for Epictetus, is not a human right or a political prerogative but a psychological and ethical achievement, a gift that we alone can bestow on ourselves. We can all be free, but only if we learn to assign paramount value to what we can control (our motivations and reactions), treat what we cannot control with equanimity, and view our circumstances as opportunities to do well and be well, no matter what happens to us through misfortune or the actions of other people.

How to Be Free features splendid new translations and the original Greek on facing pages, a compelling introduction that sets Epictetus in context and describes the importance of Stoic freedom today, and an invaluable glossary of key words and concepts. The result is an unmatched introduction to this powerful method of managing emotions and handling life's situations, from the most ordinary to the most demanding.
ISBN9780691177717
Author Epictetus
PublisherPrinceton University Press
GenrePhilosophy
FormatHardcover
PublishedOctober 2018
LanguageENG- English
Pages232
Weight1.0 lb
Target AudienceAdults
Print SizeStandard Print

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Enchiridion

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Enchiridion - Paperback

By Epictetus

About Epictetus

Epictetus (c. AD 55-135) 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 (Discourses) were transcribed and published by his student Arrian, who also composed a digest of Epictetus's teaching known as the Manual (or Enchiridion).

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