Whatever is Rational is Tolerable

by Epictetus

Genres: Philosophy, Nonfiction, Classics

128 pages, Paperback

Published April 17, 2025

About the author

Epictetus was a Greek Stoic philosopher. He was probably born a slave at Hierapolis, Phrygia (present day Pamukkale, Turkey), and lived in Rome until his exile to Nicopolis in northwestern Greece, where he lived most of his life and died. His teachings were noted down and published by his pupil Arrian in his Discourses. Philosophy, he taught, is a way of life and not just a theoretical discipline. To Epictetus, all external events are determined by fate, and are thus beyond our control, but we can accept whatever happens calmly and dispassionately. Individuals, however, are responsible for their own actions which they can examine and control through rigorous self-discipline. Suffering arises from trying to control what is uncontrollable, or from neglecting what is within our power. As part of the universal city that is the universe, human beings have a duty of care to all fellow humans. The person who followed these precepts would achieve happiness.

Other language versions:
Epictète
Epícteto
Epiktet

Reviews

[Giselle · Rating 2 out of 5]

I see personal value in shifting focus to the things within our control and understanding that peace shouldn't be outsourced, but rather come from within. However, Epictetus portrays anxiety, fear, and worry to stem out of weakness. That we should be indifferent to things outside of our control, and should subdue emotions, such as anger, and logic/reason our way through difficulties. I don't think reason or rationality is above emotion, I think the things most valuable in life cannot be reasoned, and vulnerability is great.

[Tash Em]

this hurt my brain

[just me · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read Mediations before as my entry to philosophy (and it's one of my favourites), so I'm a bit familiar in the tenets of Stoicism - e.g., accept things as they are, do and live your part, don't try to control what is beyond our control, whatever is rational is tolerable etc. But nothing could have prepared me for the hilarity in tone employed by Epictetus.

Philosophy, for the most part, is meant to be serious in tone, or at least that is my impression, because philosophy deals with abstruse, "hard-core" topics of life and death, fate, existence, to name a few. So, imagine my surprise when I came across kind advice masked by angry, b!tchy, fed-up-with-human-stupidity words, like:

Consider at what price you sell your integrity, but please, for God's sake, don't sell it cheap.

But no, it's as if I were to say to an athlete, 'Show me your shoulders,' and he responded with, 'Have a look at my weights.' 'Get out of here with you and your gigantic weights!' I'd said.

And a bunch of 'idiot', 'stupid' getting thrown around. It's chaotic, well-meaning, and funny as hell. Epictetus was a savage force of a man, I tell you.

If it was the modern day, I imagine Epictetus as an angry old man who would spit words of wisdom in between explosive curses and words of profanity with a charm noone can resist even though he tore your ego to pieces in an artful way.

I particularly love the essay On providence where he talked about God and all the wonderful resources God blesses human with (inner strength, fortitude, intellectual faculty), so we can appreciate the beauty of the world, appreciate what He does for us and use those resources to overcome any kinds of challenges.

I'm too excited to write this review, so let me share a section in On providence that had me laugh my @ss off where he rebutted those who complained about "difficult and disagreeable things" and misfortune:

'But my nose is running!' What do you have hands for, idiot, if not to wipe it? 'But how is it right that there be running noses in the first place? Instead of thinking up protests, wouldn't it be easier just to wipe your nose?

What would have become of Hercules. do you think, if there had been no lion, hydra, stag or boar - and no savage criminals to rid the world of? What would he have done in the absence of such challenges? Obviously he would have just rolled over in bed and gone back to sleep. So by snoring his life away in luxury and comfort he never would have developed into the might Hercules.

This book is full of gem-like wisdom (like the ones quoted above), so it works like a charm when you need some angry, ancient old man to psych you up to take on the world and its turbulence. The teachings from this book were taken from Epictetus' Discourses, which was written eons ago; still, the messages are strangely timeless and relevant in our modern hurly-burly world.

In short, I highly, highly recommend this book if you need a digestible piece of Stoic philosophy in all practicality, a good laugh, a slap to the face to stop mopping around in gloom and the assurance that everything will be fine.

[Lewis White]

Feels weird rating a philosophy book written almost 2000 years ago, so I won't. I will say that some of the thoughts in here are useful in some ways. Stoicism has influenced my personal philosophy quite a bit, but it has its limits and so I found this to be a bit tiresome at times.

(I still think this is a better self help book than 99% of what's written nowadays)

[Inez Antoniou-Fernon · Rating 4 out of 5]

really good, fast introduction to stoicism! ‘i must die, but must i die bawling?’

[Jakka]

Ik verwachtte een uiteenzetting over rationalisme in hoofdstukken, maar in plaats daarvan lijkt dit boek een collectie te zijn van korte essays met elk hun eigen vraagstuk. Op zich interessant afgezien van het feit dat meerdere onderwerpen meerdere keren belicht werden. Wanneer een onderwerp voor de tweede (of derde of vierde) keer aan bod kwam, leek een goede 80% van de woorden overeen te komen, alhoewel in een andere volgorde. Om maar een paar overeenkomsten te noemen:
(On providence p21,
On providence p58)

(Concerning what is in our power and what is not p3,
Concerning the necessity of logic p61,
Concerning reason, and how it studies itself p74)

(Concerning what is in our power and what is not p3,
How should we act towards the powerful p69)

(How to draw the correct consequences from the fact that God is the father of Mankind p13,
What are the consequences of us being related to God? p33,
That God supervises everyone p54)

(Don't be angry with wrongdoers p65,
That we should not be angry with people; and what people account great and small p97)

In grote lijnen preekt Epictetus om niet te vermijden waar je geen controle over hebt en niet te verlangen waar je wel controle over hebt. Zodat je niet gehecht blijft aan dingen die je makkelijk afgenomen kunnen worden, en om vruchteloze bezigheden te voorkomen. Hij spreekt over het aanscherpen dat wat ons als mensen speciaal is geschonken (vermogen tot denken en het synthetiseren van impressies). Om logica te bestuderen, omdat het de enige vorm van studie is die zijn eigen bestaansrecht beargumenteerd, en omdat het in zekere zin omvattend is voor al het andere waarmee men zich bezig kan houden. Om je hoofd hoog te houden omdat je geschapen bent door Zeus, en om die reden hoef je niet te buigen voor welke keizer of despoot dan ook. Om het dieven, domme mensen, slechte mensen, niet kwalijk te nemen wanneer ze je onrecht aandoen, omdat zij in zekere zin slechts handelen naar de waarheid die rolt uit hun synthetisering van impressies. Waarom zouden we ze ervoor veroordelen wanneer zij niets anders doen dan wat wijzelf ook doen, namelijk het handelen naar wat wij denken te observeren over de wereld? In plaats daarvan raadt hij aan, wanneer je metalen lamphouder wordt gestolen, de volgende keer een keramieke versie te kopen die het stelen minder aantrekkelijk maakt. Dit boek is misschien niet representatief voor waarom Epictetus nog bestudeerd wordt, de essays waren net wat te kort om krachtig te zijn. In plaats daarvan zorgde de opstapeling van verschillende onderwerpen, die veelal op dezelfde manier aangepakt werden, ervoor dat het boek in de herhaling leek te vallen en als gevolg weinig inzichten leek te bevatten. Zelfs dan zijn er interessante dingen te vinden hierin, al mocht de inhoud samengevat worden tot 50% van de huidige lengte.

[Marisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This isn’t easy to read and requires understanding in other expert fields to comprehend and appreciate the content of this book. (E.g. especially philosophy and history)

1. The historical context
The words of Epictetus being passed down from the Roman Empire - which is the period after Jesus’ crucifixion - reflects life during that period of time. I can see some similarities to how the Bible (especially Corinthians) and this book reflect the beliefs of that period of time and how they perceived life.

2. Regardless of time, certain things still stand true
We would think that technology, increasing costs of living and et cetera are the reason why man are stressed today. Ultimately, the basis of the human civilisation has not changed - I think people were stressed in the past too (life seemed even more fragile back then to me) and we’re always concerned about meeting our basic needs first and some of the moral issues have not changed since the past (e.g. man’s desire for power, etc)

3. Philosophy as the core content
As Epictetus is a philosopher, I may not be well-read is this field. However, I do believe the philosophers of that time (Plato, Socrates, Epictetus) are definitely very wise. I have Plato’s Republic in my bookshelf to read and hopefully I can draw some connections to the content :)

[NosNos · Rating 4 out of 5]

"You, however, who have been chosen to receive an abundance of blessings – and for free – why won’t you swear a similar oath, and, if you have done so already, why not reaffirm the commitment?

‘What is that oath? You swear that under no circumstances will you disobey, press charges, or find fault with God and his gifts. You won’t shrink from life’s essential tasks or trials. Can anyone seriously compare the soldier’s oath with ours? They swear to honour no one more than Caesar; we swear to honour no one more than ourselves."

[Joe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice to dip into some Stoic philosophy this wet January. Epictetus’s musings were generally very similar to Seneca’s, with perhaps a bit more emphasis on not worrying about what other people think. Good for focusing the mind and not getting stressed in situations that don’t merit it.

[swiss alpine herbs · Rating 4 out of 5]

literally sat in the class before my crit screening DREADING it and got called an idiot and a fool by a man who died 2 william years before me…….. yeah ok epictetus you win this time

[Jinte Eléanora · Rating 4 out of 5]

Epictetus me mattie.

[Antonio C. Montecristo · Rating 5 out of 5]

it is incredible to think the way he was thinking ...2000 years ago.

[Cain · Rating 2 out of 5]

Far be it from me to criticise a long-dead ancient greek... But I didn't like (and hardly understood) his stoicism. Stick to Marcus Aurelius, I think.

[Alfie Hay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Smart bloke

[Tristan Tyson · Rating 3 out of 5]

One minute you’re given a new perspective on life, the next you’re being called an idiot and a fool. Would read again.