Epictetus: A Stoic and Socratic Guide to Life - Hardcover

Long, A. A.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0199245568 ISBN 13: 9780199245567

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 2002

Synopsis

The philosophy of Epictetus, a freed slave in the Roman Empire, has been profoundly influential on Western thought: it offers not only stimulating ideas but practical guidance in living one's life. A. A. Long, a leading scholar of later ancient philosophy, gives the definitive presentation of the thought of Epictetus for a broad readership. Long's fresh and vivid translations of a selection of the best of Epictetus' discourses show that his ideas are as valuable and striking today as they were amost two thousand years ago.
This is a book for anyone interested in what we can learn from ancient philosophy about how to live our lives.

About this title

About the Author:

A. A. Long is Professor of Philosophy at the University of California, Berkeley. He is co-editor of the Clarendon Later Ancient Philosophers series.

Review:

"The first monograph for 34 years devoted to that most readable and read of all Stoics.... This is an exemplary work of intellectual history: it has never taken much to see that Epictetus is a witty, direct, and humane teacher of an interesting philosophy; it is good to have a study which explains something of what he (as opposed merely to it) is about."--Greece & Rome

"[A] splendidly accessible study.... Long's book offers expert and lucid guidance on every aspect of Epictetus' philosophy and his various teaching strategies, illustrated by numerous excerpts from the Discourses. It is written in a manner that is both calmly accepting of Epictetus' peculiarities and, in the proper sense, philosophical."--Times Literary Supplement

"With deft sensitivity to how Epictetus' pedagogic concerns influence what he says in different contexts....Long's focus on questions of how one might live as a philosopher keeps this book accessible and engaging throughout, as do the extensive quotations from Epictetus' discourses in Long's own lively translations. For general readers, professionals, and upper-division undergraduates through faculty."--Choice

About this edition

• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 0199245568
• ISBN 13: 9780199245567
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 330