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Is “X” Stoic?
Since I started practicing and writing about Stoicism, one of the most frequent questions I see asked around is: “is X Stoic?,” where “X” can be anything from an annoying internet meme to a scene in a movie, to a major philosophical or ethical position, like vegetarianism, or feminism. Let us therefore get down to figure out once and for all what the proper answer to this vexing question is…
One way to answer “is X Stoic?” is that the question itself is not Stoic, in a sense. Stoicism is a philosophy of personal development, which means that the moral agent (that’s you, or me, or whoever is asking the question) is at the center of it. This is to be understood in contrast with universalist philosophies like Kantian deontology and utilitarianism, which seek a “view from nowhere” in order to answer moral questions regardless of specific circumstances. Kant’s categorical imperative is valid always and for everyone (well, everyone who follows Kantian deontology). Similarly, utilitarian calculus makes no distinction between people, it is supposed to be applied at the level of the entire population.
But virtue ethics — of which Stoicism is one instantiation — is not about answering general moral question. It’s about how to become a better person. So, really, the proper way to phrase things would be: “is X going to make me a better person?”
