A Guide to the Good Life : The Ancient Art of Stoic Joy

Introduction. Part One: The Rise of Stoicism. The Birth of Philosophy. The First Stoics. The Roman Stoics. Part Two: Stoic Psychological Techniques. Negative Visualization: What's the Worst That Can Happen?. The Dichotomy of Control: On Becoming Invincible. Fatalism: Letting Go of the Past ... and the Present. Self-Denial: On Dealing with the Dark Side of Pleasure. Meditation: Watching Ourselves Practice Stoicism. Part Three: Stoic Advice. Duty: On Loving Mankind. Social Relations: On Dealing with Other People. Insults: On Putting Up with Put-Downs. Grief: On Conquering Tears with Reason. Anger: On Overcoming Anti-Joy. Personal Values: On Seeking Fame. Personal Values: On Luxurious Living. Exile: On Surviving a Change of Place. Old Age: On Being Banished to a Nursing Home. Dying: On a Good End to a Good Life. On Becoming a Stoic: Start Now and Prepare to Be Mocked. Part Four: Stoicism for Modern Living. The Anti-Stoics. Stoicism Reconsidered. Practicing Stoicism. A Stoic Reading Program. Notes. Works Cited. Read more... Abstract: Introduction. Part One: The Rise of Stoicism. The Birth of Philosophy. The First Stoics. The Roman Stoics. Part Two: Stoic Psychological Techniques. Negative Visualization: What's the Worst That Can Happen?. The Dichotomy of Control: On Becoming Invincible. Fatalism: Letting Go of the Past ... and the Present. Self-Denial: On Dealing with the Dark Side of Pleasure. Meditation: Watching Ourselves Practice Stoicism. Part Three: Stoic Advice. Duty: On Loving Mankind. Social Relations: On Dealing with Other People. Insults: On Putting Up with Put-Downs. Grief: On Conquering Tears with Reason. Anger: On Overcoming Anti-Joy. Personal Values: On Seeking Fame. Personal Values: On Luxurious Living. Exile: On Surviving a Change of Place. Old Age: On Being Banished to a Nursing Home. Dying: On a Good End to a Good Life. On Becoming a Stoic: Start Now and Prepare to Be Mocked. Part Four: Stoicism for Modern Living. The Anti-Stoics. Stoicism Reconsidered. Practicing Stoicism. A Stoic Reading Program. Notes. Works Cited
One of the great fears many of us face is that despite all our effort and striving, we will discover at the end that we have wasted our life. In A Guide to the Good Life, William B. Irvine plumbs the wisdom of Stoic philosophy, one of the most popular and successful schools of thought in ancient Rome, and shows how its insight and advice are still remarkably applicable to modern lives.

In A Guide to the Good Life, Irvine offers a refreshing presentation of Stoicism, showing how this ancient philosophy can still direct us toward a better life. Using the psychological insights and the practical techniques of the Stoics, Irvine offers a roadmap for anyone seeking to avoid the feelings of chronic dissatisfaction that plague so many of us. Irvine looks at various Stoic techniques for attaining tranquility and shows how to put these techniques to work in our own life. As he does so, he describes his own experiences practicing Stoicism and offers valuable first-hand advice for anyone wishing to live better by following in the footsteps of these ancient philosophers. Readers learn how to minimize worry, how to let go of the past and focus our efforts on the things we can control, and how to deal with insults, grief, old age, and the distracting temptations of fame and fortune. We learn from Marcus Aurelius the importance of prizing only things of true value, and from Epictetus we learn how to be more content with what we have.

Finally, A Guide to the Good Life shows readers how to become thoughtful observers of their own lives. If we watch ourselves as we go about our daily business and later reflect on what we saw, we can better identify the sources of distress and eventually avoid that pain in our life. By doing this, the Stoics thought, we can hope to attain a truly joyful life.

One of the great fears many of us face is that despite all our effort and striving, we will discover at the end that we have wasted our life. In A Guide to the Good Life , William B. Irvine plumbs the wisdom of Stoic philosophy, one of the most popular and successful schools of thought in ancient Rome, and shows how its insight and advice are still remarkably applicable to modern lives. In A Guide to the Good Life , Irvine offers a refreshing presentation of Stoicism, showing how this ancient philosophy can still direct us toward a better life. Using the psychological insights and the practical techniques of the Stoics, Irvine offers a roadmap for anyone seeking to avoid the feelings of chronic dissatisfaction that plague so many of us. Irvine looks at various Stoic techniques for attaining tranquility and shows how to put these techniques to work in our own life. As he does so, he describes his own experiences practicing Stoicism and offers valuable first-hand advice for anyone wishing to live better by following in the footsteps of these ancient philosophers. Readers learn how to minimize worry, how to let go of the past and focus our efforts on the things we can control, and how to deal with insults, grief, old age, and the distracting temptations of fame and fortune. We learn from Marcus Aurelius the importance of prizing only things of true value, and from Epictetus we learn how to be more content with what we have. Finally, A Guide to the Good Life shows readers how to become thoughtful observers of their own life. If we watch ourselves as we go about our daily business and later reflect on what we saw, we can better identify the sources of distress and eventually avoid that pain in our life. By doing this, the Stoics thought, we can hope to attain a truly joyful life. "In A Guide to the Good Life, Irvine offers a refreshing presentation of Stoicism, showing how this ancient philosophy can still direct us toward a better life. Using the psychological insights and the practical techniques of the Stoics, Irvine offers a road map for anyone seeking to avoid the feelings of chronic dissatisfaction that plague so many of us. Irvine looks at various Stoic techniques for attaining tranquility and shows how to put these techniques to work in our own life. As he does so, he describes his own experiences practicing Stoicism and offers valuable firsthand advice for anyone wishing to live better by following in the footsteps of these ancient philosophers. We learn how to minimize worry, how to let go of the past and focus on the things we can control, and how to deal with insults, grief, old age, and the distracting temptations of fame and fortune. We learn from Marcus Aurelius the importance of prizing only things of true value, and from Epictetus we learn how to be more content with what we have. Finally, A Guide to the Good Life shows us how to become thoughtful observers of our own lives. If we watch ourselves as we go about our daily business and later reflect on what we saw, we can better identify the sources of distress and eventually avoid that pain. By doing this, the Stoics thought, we can hope to attain a truly joyful life"--Provided by publisher "In A Guide to the Good Life, Irvine offers a refreshing presentation of Stoicism, showing how this ancient philosophy can still direct us toward a better life. Using the psychological insights and the practical techniques of the Stoics, Irvine offers a road map for anyone seeking to avoid the feelings of chronic dissatisfaction that plague so many of us. Irvine looks at various Stoic techniques for attaining tranquility and shows how to put these techniques to work in our own life. As he does so, he describes his own experiences practicing Stoicism and offers valuable firsthand advice for anyone wishing to live better by following in the footsteps of these ancient philosophers. We learn how to minimize worry, how to let go of the past and focus on the things we can control, and how to deal with insults, grief, old age, and the distracting temptations of fame and fortune. We learn from Marcus Aurelius the importance of prizing only things of true value, and from Epictetus we learn how to be more content with what we have." "Finally, A Guide to the Good Life shows us how to become thoughtful observers of our own lives. If we watch ourselves as we go about our daily business and later reflect on what we saw, we can better identify the sources of distress and eventually avoid that pain. By doing this, the Stoics thought, we can hope to attain a truly joyful life."--Jacket Content: Cover Page -- Title Page -- Copyright Page -- Dedication -- Contents -- Acknowledgments -- Introduction: A Plan for Living -- Part One The Rise of Stoicism -- One Philosophy Takes an Interest in Life -- Two The First Stoics -- Three Roman Stoicism -- Part Two Stoic Psychological Techniques -- Four Negative Visualization: What's the Worst That Can Happen? -- Five The Dichotomy of Control: On Becoming Invincible -- Six Fatalism: Letting Go of the Past ... and the Present -- Seven Self-Denial: On Dealing with the Dark Side of Pleasure -- Eight Meditation: Watching Ourselves Practice Stoicism -- Part Three Stoic Advice -- Nine Duty: On Loving Mankind -- Ten Social Relations: On Dealing with Other People -- Eleven Insults: On Putting Up with Put-Downs -- Twelve Grief: On Vanquishing Tears with Reason -- Thirteen Anger: On Overcoming Anti-Joy -- Fourteen Personal Values: On Seeking Fame -- Fifteen Personal Values: On Luxurious Living -- Sixteen Exile: On Surviving a Change of Place -- Seventeen Old Age: On Being Banished to a Nursing Home -- Eighteen Dying: On a Good End to a Good Life -- Nineteen On Becoming a Stoic: Start Now and Prepare to Be Mocked -- Part Four Stoicism for Modern Lives -- Twenty The Decline of Stoicism -- Twenty-One Stoicism Reconsidered -- Twenty-Two Practicing Stoicism -- A Stoic Reading Program -- Notes -- Works Cited -- Index. xi 1 The Rise of Stoicism Philosophy Takes an Interest in Life The First Stoics Roman Stoicism Stoic Psychological Techniques 65