Why Do the Stoics Even Want Friends?

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The Stoics thought that if you're truly ascetic,you don't fundamentally need other people. The number of people who report having a friend like that is very small. Epicureans think that one reason we have friends is that they help us feel secure. And the British government has a minister of loneliness.

The Greek philosopher Epicurus made a rather bold claim over two thousand years ago. The key to life, he said, was simple: pursue pleasure and avoid pain. Around this maxim he developed a school of philosophy, Epicureanism, which promised its adherents that if they took care of their basic needs, surrounded themselves with trustworthy friends, and developed a basic understanding of science, they would be happy. But is it really that simple? Can the advice of someone born 2,363 years ago still hold true? To answer these questions, we turned to Emily Austin, professor of philosophy at Wake Forest University and author of the delightful new book "Living for Pleasure: An Epicurean Guide to Life.”

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