Critical Assent, Intellectualism, and Repetition in Epictetus

Abstract

The didactic strategy of repeating a certain theoretical principle over and over again (either as a didactic strategy or as an exercise that the student must apply on himself) is ubiquitous both in Epictetus' Discourses and in the Enchiridion. However, although these techniques represent one of the most important strategies in the author's program of moral therapy, they seem to conflict with Epictetus' intellectualist conception of human agency. In this work, I aim to show that there is no such conflict, and that those techniques are necessary for his central therapeutical strategy (i.e., the demand for a critical examination of our impressions) to produce a virtuous outcome.

Magnetic excitations and phonons simultaneously studied by resonant inelastic x-ray scattering in optimally dopedBi1.5Pb0.55Sr1.6La0.4Peng1, Hashimoto2, Sala3 et al. 2015Phys. Rev. B323200View full textAdd to dashboardCite

“…The q-dependence of the phonon intensity in RIXS and its relation with charge order goes beyond the scope of this article and will be treated more systematically elsewhere. 36 Moreover in the near future better resolved and more systematic RIXS measurements will help to clarify the connection of charge-order and phonon anomaly with the paramagnon energy and intensity evolution.…”

“…Within the present experimental accuracy we can not determine the phonon dispersion, and the crucial implications of its observation in Cu L 3 RIXS will be discussed elsewhere. 36 We track the paramagnon peak as denoted by the blue arrows in Fig. 2, and superimpose it on the energy/momentum intensity map in Fig.…”

Estrategias terapéuticas e intelectualismo en el De ira de Séneca

“…La primera tiene que ver con la ausencia de apoyo textual: si bien la ira, en cuanto que pasión desencadenada, inhibe por completo nuestras capacidades racionales, Séneca no afirma 33 Es aquí, en esta diferenciación entre el escuchar y el comprender, entre el mero hecho de que una idea esté presente en el alma y que el individuo la comprenda en sentido pleno, en donde radica la riqueza de la versión específicamente romana del intelectualismo estoico (cf . Braicovich 2012). 34 Esta alternativa casaría bien con la alusión a medios no racionales, que encontramos en t2 (3.8.2), tal como el ejemplo del recurso pitagórico a la lira como recurso para calmar la ira.…”

Spiritual Exercises in Epictetus: Difficult but Justified

“…I will argue that theory is focused on modifying general, overarching beliefs, whereas spiritual exercises help us modify specific beliefs about individual contexts and situations. In the next two sections I will examine a paper by Braicovich (2012) in which he provides an interpretation of one specific spiritual exercise, which he calls "repetition". I will argue that Braicovich's interpretation of the "repetition" exercise is perfectly in line with my own theory about the role of spiritual exercises in Epictetus, and as such it provides a succinct example of how my theory could be applied to a particular exercise in Epictetus.…”

“…In the next two sections I examine a paper by Braicovich (2012), where he attempts to save the Repetition Exercise from the claims of incoherence raised by Brennan. Braicovich argues that the purpose of the Repetition Exercise is just as I have described in 1).…”