Stoicism, Epicureanism, Skepticism: History of Greek Philosophy (Part 3)-The Problem of Freedom

00:06:50
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uxZmDwRin_U

Summary

TLDRThis video is part of a series exploring the history and development of Greek philosophy, shifting from the classical period ending with Aristotle to the rise of Stoicism, Epicureanism, and Skepticism. The speaker emphasizes how, after Aristotle, the philosophical focus moved from cosmology to individual freedom from worldly distractions. The Stoics, led by Zeno, advanced the idea of emotional self-control to overcome suffering, while the Epicureans sought modest pleasures for tranquility and fearlessness. In contrast, the Skeptics adopted a stance of doubt, suspending judgment as a means to peace of mind, arguing that absolute truth is unattainable. All three groups pursued the common objective of liberation from worldly concerns, albeit through different methods: virtue for the Stoics, happiness for Epicureans, and doubt for Skeptics.

Takeaways

  • 📜 Greek philosophy evolved significantly after Aristotle, focusing on personal freedom.
  • ⚖️ Stoicism emphasizes self-control and emotional resilience.
  • 🌿 Epicureanism seeks modest pleasures to achieve tranquility.
  • ❓ Skepticism involves suspending judgment to attain peace of mind.
  • 🧘 All three philosophical movements aimed for freedom from worldly attachments.
  • 🔍 The Stoics valued virtue as the path to freedom.
  • 😊 Epicureans believed happiness and minimal desires lead to a tranquil life.
  • 🤔 Skeptics used doubt to free themselves from life's uncertainties.
  • 🔗 Philosophy transitioned from cosmology to personal liberation themes.
  • 🗝️ Key to Stoicism: Self-control helps manage destructive emotions.
  • 🍃 Epicureanism is about modest pleasure, not pure hedonism.
  • 🤷‍♀️ For Skeptics, doubt is essential for mental peace.

Timeline

  • 00:00:00 - 00:06:50

    The video continues a series on the history of Greek philosophy, focusing this time on the transition after Aristotle, emphasizing the problem of freedom. The classical period ends with Aristotle, and the new philosophical inquiries shifted from cosmology to personal freedom from worldly evils. This era aimed at restoring human divinity by freeing the soul from corruption. Philosophers like the Stoics, Epicureans, and Skeptics took different approaches to achieve this freedom. Stoicism, introduced by Zeno, emphasized self-control to overcome emotions, encouraging asceticism to achieve inner calm and independence from suffering. Epicureanism suggested a life free from excess, pursuing modest pleasure for tranquility and freedom from fear and pain. In contrast, Skepticism, influenced by thinkers like Pyrrho, claimed the impossibility of human certainty and knowledge, advocating for suspended judgment to attain peace of mind, viewing doubt as a means to free oneself from the world's problems. Despite their different methods, these schools shared the pursuit of liberation from worldly struggles.

Mind Map

Video Q&A

  • What period does this video cover in the history of philosophy?

    It covers the period from the Stoics to the Skeptics in ancient Greek philosophy.

  • What was the main focus of philosophy after Aristotle?

    The main focus was on the person's freedom from the world, rather than cosmology.

  • Who were some of the key philosophical groups discussed?

    The Stoics, Epicureans, and Skeptics were key groups discussed.

  • What is the key concept of Stoicism?

    Stoicism teaches self-control and fortitude to overcome destructive emotions and attain freedom from suffering.

  • How does Epicureanism differ from Hedonism?

    Epicureanism advocates for modest pleasure to achieve tranquility and freedom from fear, unlike Hedonism which focuses on sensual pleasure.

  • What is the Skeptics' approach to life's problems?

    The Skeptics believed in embracing doubt and suspending judgment to attain peace of mind, as they felt absolute truths could not be attained.

  • What is a common goal among Stoics, Epicureans, and Skeptics?

    Their common goal is achieving freedom from the world.

  • How did Skeptics view knowledge?

    They believed humans have an inability to gain complete knowledge and thus encouraged suspending judgment.

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  • 00:00:00
    hello vo notes friends welcome back for
  • 00:00:02
    another edition of our de whiteboard in
  • 00:00:06
    part two of this series of editions
  • 00:00:08
    about the history of the development of
  • 00:00:10
    Greek philosophy I have traced the
  • 00:00:12
    development of Greek philosophy from the
  • 00:00:14
    Sophists ooh Aristotle with emphasis on
  • 00:00:17
    the problem of knowledge now in today's
  • 00:00:21
    edition of our daily whiteboard I will
  • 00:00:23
    present the development of Greek
  • 00:00:25
    philosophy particularly ancient Greek
  • 00:00:28
    philosophy from the Stoics to the
  • 00:00:30
    sceptics this time with emphasis on the
  • 00:00:34
    problem of freedom to reiterate the
  • 00:00:39
    classic period of ancient Greek
  • 00:00:41
    philosophy ends with Aristotle
  • 00:00:42
    now after Aristotle velocipede took a
  • 00:00:46
    different direction here the problem of
  • 00:00:49
    philosophy was no longer on cosmology
  • 00:00:52
    that is the problem of the world stuff
  • 00:00:55
    world order and world process but on the
  • 00:00:59
    person's freedom from the world this
  • 00:01:03
    desire for freedom from the world which
  • 00:01:06
    came after Aristotle was viewed as the
  • 00:01:09
    restoration of the divine perfection of
  • 00:01:11
    the human person an inner perfection
  • 00:01:14
    which approximate divinity it is
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    important to know that the human person
  • 00:01:19
    was conceived in antiquity as an entity
  • 00:01:22
    that can approximate divinity
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    and it is also important to note that
  • 00:01:28
    the background here is that the world is
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    full of evil of debauchery of wickedness
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    which have corrupted the human soul thus
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    the need to free oneself from the world
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    those who attempted to free the human
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    person from the world at least in the
  • 00:01:48
    context of ancient Greek philosophy were
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    represented by the Stoics Epicureans and
  • 00:01:54
    the skeptics so let me briefly sketch
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    the key concepts in stoicism
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    epicureanism and skepticism according to
  • 00:02:04
    the basics of philosophy stoicism is an
  • 00:02:08
    ancient Greek philosophy developed by
  • 00:02:10
    Zeno obsidium around 300 BC as a
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    refinement of cynicism which teaches the
  • 00:02:17
    development of self-control and
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    fortitude as a means of overcoming
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    destructive emotions
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    it does not seek to extinguish emotions
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    completely but rather seeks to transform
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    them by a resolute asceticism a
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    voluntary abstinence from worldly
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    pleasures which enables a person to
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    develop a clear judgement in her calm
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    and freedom from suffering which it
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    considers the ultimate goal thus
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    according to the virtue of his toys to
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    free oneself from the world one must
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    seize the desire to suffer to struggle
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    that is to strive for the solution of
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    the problems of the world in a sense one
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    must put herself in a condition in which
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    there is nothing worthy of desire in
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    which the will is affected and
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    influenced by nothing on the other hand
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    epic Udo suggests that for one to
  • 00:03:23
    protect herself against the world one
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    must lead a life that is free from
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    suffering in one way of doing this is
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    not to ask too much from nature in this
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    way one suffers a little and enjoy as
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    much as possible however it is a mistake
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    to equate the peak arianism with
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    hedonism as we know hedonism is the
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    pursuit of pleasure sensual pleasure so
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    to speak thus the famous hedonist motto
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    eat now drink now be merry for tomorrow
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    you will die
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    on the contrary Epicureanism urges one
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    to seek modest pleasure to attain the
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    greatest good which is the attainment of
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    tranquility and freedom from fear or
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    ataraxia as well as the absence of
  • 00:04:17
    bodily pain or apana lastly we have the
  • 00:04:22
    doubt of the ancient Greek skeptics
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    ancient Greek skepticism is generally
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    applied to either a member of Plato's
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    Academy during its skeptical period or
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    to a follower of Pierrot Pyrenean
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    skepticism flourished from an ISA Dimas
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    revival to Sixtus empirical who lived
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    some time in the second or third century
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    CE II thus the two main varieties of
  • 00:04:48
    ancient skepticism academic and peroneal
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    it is known that almost every form of
  • 00:04:56
    ancient Greek skepticism has something
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    to do with a claim that humans have the
  • 00:05:01
    inability to gain knowledge of the world
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    and so the need to suspend judgment in
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    the case of Pierrot who was so
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    overwhelmed by his inability to
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    determine rationally which competing
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    schools of thoughts during his time was
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    correct
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    doubt then is the key to attaining peace
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    of mind or ataraxia
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    in fact after admitting to himself that
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    indeed he could not attain absolute
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    truth Pierrot gained peace of mind
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    thus doubt for the skeptics is the key
  • 00:05:37
    to freeing oneself from the wicked world
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    in fact the skeptics claim that for one
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    to get rid of the unrest of mind one
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    must cease to strive and must give up
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    the solution of the problems of the
  • 00:05:51
    world being convinced that these
  • 00:05:54
    problems cannot be solved to reiterate
  • 00:05:57
    the Stoics Epicureans and skeptics have
  • 00:06:01
    one common goal that is freedom from the
  • 00:06:04
    world the stoic seek to become free from
  • 00:06:07
    the world through virtue they P Koreans
  • 00:06:11
    through happiness and the skeptics
  • 00:06:13
    through doubt all right that's it for
  • 00:06:19
    today full transcript of this video is
  • 00:06:22
    available at filo notes comm and in the
  • 00:06:25
    succeeding editions i will continue to
  • 00:06:27
    discuss the development of Western
  • 00:06:29
    philosophy from the pre-socratic to the
  • 00:06:32
    modern period to keep you updated of our
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    [Music]
Tags
  • Greek Philosophy
  • Stoicism
  • Epicureanism
  • Skepticism
  • Freedom
  • Aristotle
  • Self-Control
  • Tranquility
  • Doubt
  • Ancient Philosophy