480.
Stoicism and hope
Stoicism,
originating with the Greek Zeno in the 3rd century BC and influential until the 3rd century AD, with Marcus
Aurelius. Seneca and Epictetus, has had considerable influence. It pleaded for
invulnerability, autarky, i.e. self-sufficiency, in a simple life, and not
letting oneself be controlled by the desire for pleasure or
fear of pain, accepting the moment as it occurs, using one's mind to understand
the world and to do one's part in nature's plan, and by working together and
treating others fairly and justly.
There is much to be said for it it for
weathering the present storm of the Corona virus, in being thrown back on
oneself or one’s family, lack of recreation, in sports or entertainment, social
distancing, with few or no social contacts, no services with bodily contact,
and so on.
One can object that it is a philosophy of
distrust, no hope, no room for the challenges and risks of life, thymos, the
urge to manifest oneself and engage with the world, and even is cowardice. It
disables entrepreneurship.
The literature on trust renders confidence as
surrender to the inevitable, such as laws of nature or policy measures of the
state, on which one has no or little influence, and where one cannot feel sorry
afterwards for submitting to it. This in contrast to trust, where could have
avoided risk, and creates risk voluntarily, and can regret it afterwards.
Stoicism accepts confidence, pleads for
resilience and robustness to inevitable disappointments, and discourages trust.
An example would be Schopenhauer, who preached distrust and suspicion.
As indicated, with Corona we can now benefit
from the prudence, autarky and resilience of stoicism, but can we do without
trust and hope?
The future is uncertain, and can harbour both threat
and promise. Now, one can look at it in despair, but loss of hope yields loss
of strength and initiative. Here confidence, faith in nature, can breed
defeatism and deepen the crisis. Hope is needed to take action and survive. One
can try to see opportunity and what good remains, appreciate what formerly one
took for granted.
So, what to do? The wisdom of stoicism lies not
in inaction but in engagement with what is within the scope of one’s
possibilities, and to achieve invulnerability or resilience or disregard to
what lies beyond them. Could you safely support care for the sick and the
vulnerable, such as vagrants, the
elderly, and the indigent?
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