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Why Stoicism Doesn’t Work Without God | Tad Brennan on Stoic Ethics

19 snips
Apr 26, 2025
Tad Brennan, a Cornell professor specializing in ancient philosophy and Stoicism, dives deep into the relationship between Stoic ethics and theology. He argues that true Stoic ethics requires a belief in God, emphasizing the intricacies of Stoic philosophy and the importance of virtue in achieving happiness. The discussion also contrasts Stoicism with Aristotelian ethics, exploring how divine rationality impacts our understanding of ethics. Brennan highlights the role of moral exemplars and critiques practical ethics within Stoicism, shedding light on the complexities of ethical reasoning.
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INSIGHT

God is Central to Stoicism

  • Stoicism fundamentally relies on the belief in a divine God, specifically Zeus, to function properly.
  • Secularizing Stoicism without this theology fails to capture the Stoics' original ethical system.
INSIGHT

Virtue is Knowledge of Indifference

  • Virtue for humans is knowledge about good, bad, and indifferent things, especially how to handle things indifferent to happiness.
  • Health, wealth, and illness are indifferent but require knowing the right way to respond to live well.
INSIGHT

True Self is Rational Soul

  • Stoics hold that virtue alone constitutes happiness because our true self is the rational soul linked to divine will.
  • The body and external conditions are not part of the true self's welfare.
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