Stoicism For Dummies

by Tom Morris, Gregory Bassham

The philosophy that will help you become more resilient in the face of life’s challenges Stoicism For Dummies will teach you the basic principles of stoic philosophy and show you how it can help you navigate the ups and downs of life. We all face challenges and setbacks, and, if we have the right mindset, we can sail through them with ease. This book offers a comprehensive look at Stoic philosophy, uncovering its strengths and attractions and shedding light on its limitations, both in the ancient world where it was developed, and in our world today. Learn how you can apply stoic principles for personal growth and better living, and how you can adapt this philosophical outlook to your unique circumstances. Written in terms anyone can understand, this friendly Dummies guide helps you understand stoicism, and also apply it in your life. This book is great for anyone who wants to learn more about stoicism and its benefits.

Genres: Philosophy, Nonfiction

400 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

There is more than one author by this name. This profile contains various Tom's.

Reviews

[John Matthew IV · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book. I have read many books on Stoicism and this is the best. The original works by the classic Stoics is in a different category but if you want to learn what Stoicism is all about, I have not read a better book. This is not just for dummies.

The ending is a bit sad as modern Stoics are not really Stoics.

p. 42: Three periods of ancient Stoicism:
1) Early (300 - 129 BC): Founding by Zeno to death of Antipater
2) Middle (129 - 50 BC): Panetius and Posidonius
3) Late (50 BC - AD 180): Seneca, Epictetus and Marcus Aurelius

p. 46: Seneca on Anger

p. 47: "Of all the great Stoic teachers, only Epictetus explicitly condemns slavery as contrary to human dignity and devine law (Discourse 1.13.5)."

p. 51: "According to Epictetus, the idea that we should gladly welcome and embrace all events in the world follows from the Stoic doctrine of cosmic optimism."

p. 59: The Meditations

p. 63: Matthew Arnold on Marcus Aurelius: https://www.jstor.org/stable/449319

p. 67: The Stoics

p. 74: Roman Stoicism

p. 78: The Hellenistic Philosophers, Volume 1: Translations of the Principal Sources with Philosophical Commentary

p. 78: "The Stoics, sometimes, in fact, use the terms 'fate' and 'God' interchangeably."

p. 86: "All's right that happens in the world." (Meditations, 4.10)

p. 87: "Like Aristotle, most ancient Stoics believed that nature is an ordered hierarchy and that inferior beings exist for the sake of superior ones (see, e.g. Meditations, 5.16)

p. 103: "It's perfectly possible to be godlike, although unrecognized as such. Always keep that in mind and remember that the needs of a happy life are very few. (Meditations, 7.67)"

p. 105: "Do you want to be happy? Embrace virtue. That's the beginning and end of the story, according to our Stoic advisors."

p. 105: "To the founding Stoics like Zeno, the broadest purpose for any human life is to 'live in accord with nature.'"

p. 106: "Only virtue is good, and only vice is bad"

p. 115: "The temptations, pressures, and threats that enter your life are then not to be feared, because they are nothing more than dispreferred indifferents that you are free to pass by or ignore. It's up to you how you choose to react to them."

p. 105: "It is not things that disturb men, but their judgments about these things. (Epictetus, Handbook, 5.)"

p. 129: "Nothing in the affairs of men is worthy of great anxiety." (Plato, Republic, Book 10)

p. 131: "But classic Stoic thought wants us to follow reason in all ways and at all times because it's a core part of our nature, and 'follow nature' is one of our basic guidelines, properly understood."

p. 143: "Sometimes, Stoicism gives us answers. At other times, it simply helps us to grasp right questions. A philosophy can be useful either way."

p. 146: Three Spiritual Disciplines
THOUGHT - DESIRE - ACTION
What you believe - What you want - What you do
Your judgments - Your attractions - Your deeds
To believe rationally - To embrace rightly - To act virtuously

p. 147: "Instead of wishing that things would happen as you'd like, wish that they would happen as they do, and then you'll be content. (Epictetus, Handbook, 5.)"

p. 158: Paolo Coelho: "It's the possibility of having a dream come true that makes life interesting."

p. 160: "The many facets of happiness"

p. 161: "[Epictetus] directed us to desire one and only one external thing: that which is."

p. 168: "Freedom is not acquired by the satisfaction of craving, but by its suppression. (Epictetus, Discourses, 9.1.175.)"

p. 179: The Functionality Principle: The value of most things depends on how we use them, how they function for us."

p. 184: "[T]he Stoics agreed with the Cynics that 'follow nature' is the most basic rule of morality."

p. 200: "Relationships rock the world."

p. 210: The Four Foundations:
1) The Intellectual Dimension that aims at Truth
2) The Aesthetic Dimension that aims at Beauty
3) The Moral Dimension that aims at Goodness
4) The Spiritual Dimension that aims at Unity

p. 211: "Happy is the man who does the work of a man. And what is a man's work? To love his neighbour ... to distinguish false ideas from true, and to contemplate the works of nature. (Meditations, 8.26)"

p. 214: The Stoic Idea of the City

p. 226: "Most things with power for good seem to have equal and opposite power for ill."

p. 229: "Do not seek to have everything that happens go as you wish but wish for everything to go as it does in fact happen, and your life will be serene. (Epictetus, Handbook, 8.)"

p. 232: "The Reverse Hedonic Treadmill"

p. 233: "If you seek tranquility, do less. (Meditations, 4.24)"

p. 236: "[T]he idea of 'living in agreement with nature' has ever since been one of the central Stoic slogans for how we should conduct our lives. Our job is to live in agreement with nature. That will produce virtue and happiness as its natural result."

p. 238: "Aristotle on Friendship: One soul dwelling in two bodies."

p. 242: Joannes Stobaeus

p. 251: Marcus Aurelius in Love

p. 288: "Aristotle famously describes the virtues as good habits."

p. 291: "The unity of virtue thesis: He who has one virtue has them all."

p. 294: Cato the Younger (93-43 BCE)

p. 308: "Each night, the Stoic would himself ask some questions about the day just lived through, such as:
What did I do wrong?
What did I do right?
What duty did I leave undone?
What progress did I make today?
What can I do better in the future?"

p. 314: "This is the idea of what Nietzsche later called amor fati, of a love of fate. For Stoics, it's rooted in their belief in a providential world order."

p. 315: "Past and present events, on the Stoic view, reveal God's will perfectly, but his future will is difficult to know."

p. 324: A Man in Full by Tom Wolfe

p. 326: Pierre Hadot

p. 328: A Guide to the Good Life: The Ancient Art of Stoic Joy by William B. Irvine, page 242

p. 331: Damning criticism of William Irvine

p. 333: Stoicism and the Art of Happiness by Donald J. Robertson

p. 334: A Field Guide to a Happy Life: 53 Brief Lessons for Living by Massimo Pigliucci

p. 339: "For instance, some forms of modern Stoicism stick fairly closely to the historic teachings of ancient Stoicism, whereas others propose major changes. There are three kinds of major changes: rejections, omissions, and add-ons."

p. 341: "Modern Stoicism is a contemporary popular movement and family of philosophical views aimed at reviving Stoicism as a practical philosophy of life and adapting it to modern values and perspectives. Its main focus is on applying Stoic principles to everyday life, with the goal of helping people become happier, wiser, and more virtuous and emotionally healthy."

p. 341: Symposium: What Is Modern Stoicism?: https://modernstoicism.com/symposium-...

p. 348: The Beginner's Guide to Stoicism: Tools for Emotional Resilience and Positivity by Matthew Van Natta

p. 348: The Little Book of Stoicism: Timeless Wisdom to Gain Resilience, Confidence, and Calmness by Jonas Salzgeber

p. 352: "If You're Reading Stoicism for Life Hacks, You're Missing the Point" by Nancy Sherman, New York Times, May 13, 2021:
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/14/op...

p. 352 "Greek Stoic Epictetus"

p. 354: First-rate scholarly books:
Epictetus: A Stoic and Socratic Guide to Life by Anthony A. Long
The Greatest Empire: A Life of Seneca by Emily Wilson
Stoicism and Emotion by Margaret R. Graver
Marcus Aurelius: A Guide for the Perplexed by William O. Stephens

p. 359ff: Ten Books Every (Budding) Stoic Should Read
1) The Inner Citadel: The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius by Pierre Hadot
2) A Guide to the Good Life: The Ancient Art of Stoic Joy by William B. Irvine
3) The Stoic Art of Living: Inner Resilience and Outer Results by Tom Morris
4) How to Be a Stoic: Using Ancient Philosophy to Live a Modern Life by Massimo Pigliucci
5) How to Think Like a Roman Emperor: The Stoic Philosophy of Marcus Aurelius by Donald J. Robertson
6) The Stoics by F.H. Sandbach
7) The Obstacle Is the Way: The Timeless Art of Turning Trials into Triumph by Ryan Holiday
8) The Daily Stoic: 366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perseverance, and the Art of Living by Ryan Holiday
9) Epictetus: A Stoic and Socratic Guide to Life by Anthony A. Long
10) Breakfast with Seneca: A Stoic Guide to the Art of Living by David Fideler

p. 364: Other books
* Lessons in Stoicism: What Ancient Philosophers Teach Us About How to Live by John Sellars
* Stoic Wisdom: Ancient Lessons for Modern Resilience by Nancy Sherman
* Stoic Warriors: The Ancient Philosophy behind the Military Mind by Nancy Sherman
* Slave and Sage: Remarks on the Stoic Handbook of Epictetus by William Ferraiolo

p. 365ff: Ten Great Stoic Blogs and Podcasts
1) Daily Stoic Blog: https://dailystoic.com/
2) Stoicism Today Blog: https://modernstoicism.com/about-stoi...
3) Figs In Winter Blog: https://figsinwinter.substack.com/
4) Stoicism: Philosophy as a Way of Life: https://medium.com/stoicism-philosoph...
5) Traditional Stoicism Blog: https://traditionalstoicism.com/
1) Daily Stoic Podcast: https://dailystoic.com/podcast/
2) The Walled Garden Podcast: https://www.simonjedrew.com/thewalled...
3) Stoic Meditations Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast...
4) Stoicism: Philosophy as a Way of Life Podcast: https://donaldrobertson.substack.com/...
5) Stoic Coffee Break Podcast: https://stoic.coffee/break/

[BabyLunLun · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well how do I say it . Its an interesting read but not as exhilarating as Existentialism. Great advice about life that is applicable and practical throughout the ages. They even have a section comparing Modern Stoicism and Ancient Stoicism and its impact on the society and how it came to be revive. Reading enjoyment wise, not super enjoyable

I have only read Meditations by Marcus Aurelius but I think that one is better because duh its primary text but overall its would be much useful to read the original text.

[James · Rating 1 out of 5]

Doesn't do what it claims it will. Gave me a couple laughs, otherwise learned nothing new and was all just review.
This is a book ABOUT Stoicism, it's history, what famous stoics thought or speculation on what they would have thought or said about things.

Wastes an hour talking about death only to basically say nothing about it, just navel gazing bs.
The type of philosophy that argues about the definition of ethics, what being ethical means to oneself and society, and how without a concrete definition and rules for being ethical handed down by GAWD we can never know if we're truly being ethical or not.
Rather than teaching what stoics actually taught, how to be more ethical day in and out, or as Marcus Aurelius' Meditations should be called "How I try to not be an asshole."

This barely teaches how to practice stoicism, at most it spends less than an hour giving some practical tips, ie simple phrases to repeat, use mindfulness, journal daily. That's it, the other 90% is theoretical, historical, and asks questions it doesn't answer while rambling on about why it can't be answered for an hour simply wasting everyone's time.
A greater amount of time is the author doing what reviewers here do, gatekeep about who is a REAL TRUE PROPER Stoic, and who's just a POSER who doesn't deserve the fame that the author does because the author released a book about stoicism BEFORE it was popular.
Sad, just pathetically sad hipster like passive aggressive whining, tribalism, and a no true Scotsman if ever there was one.
It also asks what "Real Stoicism is", what you mean the part about a person in a position of authority taking advantage of someone they are meant to teach by forming a sexual relationship with them first? That stuff? The stuff that says it's accepted to have sex with a teenager whatever age between 13 - 19 that is? Yeah, if that's "REAL" or "TRUE" or "CLASSIC" Stoicism, I think the modern version is doing Stoicism right by changing whatever they want.

Focus on being the best, most virtuous, and ethical human you can be, stoic or not, and don't worry about what others are doing or are not doing to your standards.
If you forget that, you've already failed.

If you talk for hours about what "best" "virtuous" or "ethical" means, instead of teaching how to be so and also doing so oneself, then just like how most religious followers miss the point of their religion, you're missing the point of philosophy, Chidi Anagonye.

You don't fix philosophy, it fixes you.
You don't help philosophy, it helps you.
You don't explain philosophy, it explains you.

It's not about sitting in an ivory tower with old tomes that you're safekeeping, nor talking down to uneducated plebs and keeping them ignorant while ignoring their plight.



As a final addition, the author defends the practice of "virtue signaling" while misunderstanding why people online use it as a pejorative term.

A perfect anecdotal example is this:
June 20, 2024. Commentor responding to a reel and attacking others for playing D&D:
"I can’t imagine being a grown adult and enjoying playing pretend with your other adult friends, but this time it includes dice lmaooo"

March 6, 2023. Commenter's "Virtue Signaling" comment along with a shared post:
"It costs $0.00 to be kind 💕"

Original post from someone else that was shared:
I cannot stress this enough, you have NO IDEA what other people carry with them EVERYDAY. You have NO IDEA what someone’s life is like. Don’t create more pain & stress to others. BE KIND. BE GENUINE. Stop being so mean to people to fulfill whatever it is you don’t like about you.

This is why people online use "virtue signaling" as a pejorative, for people like that.
Commentor: "It costs $0.00 to be kind 💕"
Same Commentor: "I can’t imagine being a grown adult and enjoying playing pretend with your other adult friends, but this time it includes dice lmaooo"
"Signaling" their "virtues" by professing to have virtues and beliefs that they don't actually possess and live up to, solely for social brownie points and to seem like a good person, when how they actually act shows evidence to the contrary and makes them a hypocrite for engaging in said virtue signaling.

[Brian Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Arguably THE most thorough overview of Stoicism you’ll find. I highly recommend it if you want a deeper dive.

“This is the right book for you if you’ve heard about Stoicism from a podcast or through friends and want to learn more, or if you’ve read one of the best-selling books that are reintroducing this distinctive philosophy into our time and would like an opportunity to work more fully through the powerful and fascinating array of ideas to be found in this way of thinking and living. It’s also the right book for you even if you hardly know much about the Stoics at all but are ready for some fresh perspectives on your life, for some new ways of handling what’s challenging and difficult, and perhaps even for liberating yourself from so many of the forces that seem to hold people back from being their best, from feeling their best, and doing their best in the world. …

We all want to understand the best wisdom there is for how we can live and grow. And you’re in luck, because getting at least a good start on that task is the purpose of this book. We’ll give you the key background history and the greatest thoughts of some of the most interesting practical thinkers in history. In many ways just normal, smart people who used their curiosity and their talents well, and in that way reached extraordinary heights in their thoughts and daily practices for living well. And now they can help us do the same in our own lives.”

~ Tom Morris & Gregory Bassham from Stoicism for Dummies

Stoicism for Dummies combines two of my absolute favorite things: Stoicism and Tom Morris.

Tom Morris is one of my ALL-TIME favorite teachers. I’ve done SIX other Philosopher’s Notes on his great books. Tom has two PhD’s from Yale—one in Philosophy and the other in Religious Studies. He was a beloved philosophy professor at Notre Dame for 15 years.

As I was creating this Note, I was struck by how wonderful the world is as I connected the dots from THAT book (one of the first “self-development” books I ever read) to THIS book.

Now… This book is fantastic. It isn’t for “Dummies” though. Tom and his co-author, fellow academic philosopher Gregory Bassham, do a great job of rigorously covering the history and practical application of Stoicism while injecting plenty of humor along the way.

It’s arguably THE most thorough overview of Stoicism you’ll find. I highly recommend it if you want a deeper dive.

It’s packed with Big Ideas. Some of my favorites are:

1. The Ancient Stoics - Seneca, Epictetus, Aurelius.
2. Areté - Figure 8–1: Meet My Tattoo.
3. Money, Fame, Happiness - Choose Wisely.
4. Fuel for the Fire - Forging Antifragile Confidence.
5. Heroic Role Models - Who Are YOURS?

Lastly… I’ve added Stoicism for Dummies by Tom Morris and Gregory Bassham to my collection of Philosopher’s Notes--distilling the Big Ideas into 6-page PDF and 20-minute MP3s on 600+ of the BEST self-development books ever. You can get access to all of those plus a TON more over at https://heroic.us.

[Barry Karlsson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stoicism For Dummies (2024) by Tom Morris & Gregory Bassham was an unexpectedly excellent read. My preconceived notion that books in the “For Dummies” series are superficial, full of jargon and platitudes, was completely disproven. This was a professional compilation of knowledge, thoroughly discussing the fundamentals of Stoicism with extensive references and updated with modern interpretations, including applications in areas such as CBT. It also concluded with a critical discussion on pop philosophy and commercialisation. All of it was well-written and conveyed a positive, constructive attitude.

[Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The four cardinal virtues: courage, self control, justice and wisdom

Live in the present moment.

Adopt the view from above.

Look at all situations objectively

Contemplate impermanence

Focus on what you can control

[Edward ott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent overview

[Brian Corbin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting intro to Stoicism. Learned a bunch. It’s much more of a religion than what today’s pop Stoics imply.

[William T]

Pub. 2024

[Nouvel Diamant]

Ich bin hier zum selben Schluss gekommen wie bei vergleichbaren Werken:
Die deutschen Übersetzungen von Epiktet, Seneca und Marc Aurel sind so kurz, lesbar und gut, dass ein Umweg über zusammenfassende Sekundärliteratur nicht sinnvoll scheint.