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Epictetus introduction to essay
Personal goals in life
Epictetus introduction to essay
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Envy is the desire to have a quality, possession, or other desirable attribute belonging to someone else. In the passage, the author gradually hints to the reader his envy of the philosopher Epictetus and his life. He brings to the reader's attention the different attributes Epictetus acquires that he does not. The tone of the author's writing extends farther than just a modest commentary on Epictetus, it reveals his desire to become Epictetus. Through this passage, the author is trying to obliquely convey his initial envy to become Epictetus, while also indirectly exposing himself. In the passage, the author elaborates on the fact that he is lethargic when it comes to wisdom. The author states, "I desire wisdom as keenly as Solomon did,
“People are often vain of their most criminal passions; but envy is one passion so mean and low that nobody will admit it” Francois de la Rochefoucauld(1613-1680), a French philosopher, once stated and that statement summarizes the undertone of A Separate Piece by John Knowles. The story is set at a highly competitive boy’s school on the East Coast that sets the perfect stage to develop the storyline. Gene’s insecurity, which led to jealousy of Finny, is the cause of the overall conflict.
Thrasymachus' perspective of human nature is that we all seek to maximize power, profit and possessions. He gives the argument that morality is not an objective truth but rather a creation of the stronger (ruling) party to serve its own advantage. Therefore definitions of "just" and "unjust", "right" and "wrong", "moral" and "immoral" are all dependent upon the decree of the ruling party. Thrasymachus argues that acting "morally", in accordance with the ruling party, benefits the ruling party, while acting "immorally", injures the ruling party and benefits oneself.
Intellectuals are philosophers, are writers, are artists. They are all those people who work with their minds by questioning the events that touch them and that are touched by them. To recall a Plato's famous allegory, we can say that intellectuals are those who are able to look beyond the shadows and never take concepts for granted. However, some questions as what their role is and, more specifically, whether they should be engaged in politics are still unanswerable. Over the years answers and behaviors towards the engaged culture have been various and we can assume that the intellectuals who cannot separate the two live their lives actively for they want to be part of the events that surround them and let awareness win over apathy. On the contrary, we can assume that those who let apathy win are the intellectuals that look at politics and culture as two different and specific concepts and live a solitary life far from society. However, this is not an appropriate judgment because it would be difficult to consider to which extent solitude can be regarded as cowardliness and to which extent action can be regarded as consciousness.
Herodotus is a Greek historian who travelled to Egypt and wrote down his observations about the Egyptians in his second volume of his histories. He is also well known as the “father of history”, although his observations were not always accurate. Through his experience in Egypt, he developed many different views of what he thought the Egyptians were, and why they were worth describing. Herodotus made observations on the Egyptian’s because their habits and customs were reversed from other countries.
Have you ever felt like, enough is not enough? When is enough, enough? Different people of different ages, race, cultures and status in life have different strategies on how to handle desires. Just like the old saying goes; “To each, his own.”
But jealousy, and especially sexual jealousy, brings with it a sense of shame and humiliation. For this reason it is generally hidden; if we perceive it we ourselves are ashamed and turn our eyes away; and when it is not hidden it commonly stirs contempt as well as pity. Nor is this all. Such jealousy as Othello’s converts human nature into chaos, and liberates the beast in man; and it does this in relation to one of the most intense and also the most ideal of human feelings. (169)
...ticle, Solomon has an unpleasant attitude of blaming others and complaining about the issue without proposing any real solutions. It also seems that he divides people into two categories: readers (good) and non-readers (bad), and he look down upon those who do not read. This will cause the readers to be emotionally uncomfortable and to reject his arguments and opinions because of the bias behind it.
Othello is considered one of the infamous (if not the most) literary works focusing on jealousy and the consequences it brings about. Various characters besides Othello fall victim to jealousy in the play and subject to different forms, i.e. sexual suspicion, lust and even disputes over promotion. It may be said that jealousy is the essence of the ‘tragedy’ that takes place in Othello. Shakespeare utilizes the literary technique of dramatic and tragic irony in these lines delivered by Iago, addressing Othello, “O beware, my lord, of jealousy! It is the green-eyed monster which doth mock the meat it feeds on…” , It is ironic because although on the surface Iago plays an advisory role against jealousy, he actually means for it to further incline Othello towards it. The audience is aware of Iago’s plots and schemes, though Othello is not ...
In the world there are two distinct types of things. There are things that exist external to us, such as one's reputation or a relationship. We do not have direct control over these things since they exist outside of us. Then there are internal things that we do have control over, like out desires, or things we dislike. The internal things can be controlled, while the external can be harder to control. Some philosophers even believe that the external things cannot be controlled, and attempting to control them will just bring unhappiness.
As a worldview, Stoicism is a philosophical approach to help people to cope with times of great stress and troubles. In order to give comfort to humanity, the Stoics agree with the Pantheistic view that God and nature are not separate. Instead, the two forces are one. By believing that God is nature, humans have a sense of security because nature, like God, is recognized as rational and perfect. The perfection of nature is explained through the Divine, or natural, Law. This law gives everything in nature a predetermined plan that defines the future based on past evens (cause and effect). Because the goal for everything in nature is to fulfill its plan, the reason for all that happens in nature is because it is a part of the plan. It is apparent that, because this law is of God, it must be good. The Divine Law is also universal. Everything on the planet has a plan that has already been determined. There are no exceptions or limitations to the natural law. The world in the Stoics’ eyes is flawless, equal, and rational.
Everyone knows the famous Herakles also known as Hercules the hero. I believe Hercules is a great hero for many reasons. Let me sum up his history, Hercules is the son of Zeus and Alcmene. However, Zeus has a wife named Hera & he cheated on her with Alcmene who got pregnant with his baby. So Hera found out & was very angry, she vowed to make Hercules life dreadful since she couldn't make Zeus's life horrid. Hercules that married a beautiful woman of the name Megara they had two children, Hera took advantage of that & sent him a fit of rage in which he murdered his wife & children. He wanted forgiveness from Apollo to get rid of his pollution. Apollo told him to do 12 request for 12 years I which he will assist an
Thesis statement: While the ancient Greek historians made great strides in perfecting the writing of history, the Roman historians (and the Greek historian writing Roman history) continued perfecting the art of writing good history.
Week 2’s information brought the topic of Epicurus and the notion that pleasure is the ultimate goal and should be accomplished in order to achieve the good life. It was interesting to note that since Epicurus was a consequentalist, he condemned the indulgent life for reasons of self-interest and was critical of political and public life which he described as a prison house. For example by having the necessary food and drink, we already feel fulfilled and happy. Although I do agree that individuals should feel free to experience life to the fullest and to do things for ourselves, I do however think that through experiences we are able to experience a good life. By acting selfless we can help others and contribute to society, with the same feeling. Tim O Keefe’s reading was also interesting to read as he was very critical of Epicurus’ philosophy and saw it as unethical. He made a valid point when explaining that if the belief of a mental pleasure is greater than physical pleasures and a lack of pain, that in itself is a kind of pleasure. I disagree even more due to the Cyrenaics view that not all mental pleasure depend on bodily ones. for example individuals can experience happiness and joy in conversations and ambitions
In the second place, there is no subject more exciting than sexual jealousy rising to the pitch of passion; and there can hardly be any spectacle at once so engrossing and so painful as that of a great nature suffering the torment of this passion, and driven by it to a crime which is also a hideous blunder. [. . .] But jealousy, and especially sexual jealousy, brings with it a sense of shame and humiliation. For this reason it is generally hidden; if we perceive it we ourselves are ashamed and turn our eyes away; and when it is not hidden it commonly stirs contempt as well as pity. Nor is this all. Such jealousy as Othello’s converts human nature into chaos, and liberates the beast in man; and it does this in relation to one of the most intense and also the most ideal of human feelings. (169)
The human need for conflict is a constant factor in everyday life and has been demonstrated throughout our readings of the Romans and the Greeks. As seen in Herodotus’ The History, tales of battles and wars are described in epic proportions and are a constant theme throughout his writings. Herodotus plays into the aspect of fighting, as well as the cultural belief of Greece that war was a necessary part of society and should be valued by the citizens. By heightening the actions of soldiers in battle, war is encouraged as a way of life because it is emphasized as a way of being remembered and praised for committing honorable deeds and protecting Greece. Herodotus incorporates numerous acts of valor like those seen in The Battle of Thermopylae in his writings in order to provide the ultimate connection between Greek behavior and warfare as a representation of what it meant to practice good citizenship. Herodotus incorporates the Role of the Gods, male behavior, and describing the Persians in The History in his attempt to portray the historic event of the 300’s last stand against the Persians in a way that Greeks would look up to and hopefully want to follow.