Lives of the Stoics: The Art of Living from Zeno to Marcus Aurelius
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- Create Date：2022-01-10 08:50:57
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Ryan Holiday
- ISBN：1788166019
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Summary
THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
'In story after page-turning story， Lives of the Stoics brings ancient philosophers to life。' - David Epstein， bestselling author of Range
'Wonderful' - Chris Bosh， two-time NBA Champion
For millennia， Stoicism has been the ancient philosophy that attracts those who seek greatness， from athletes to politicians and everyone in between。 And no wonder: its embrace of self-mastery， virtue and indifference to that which we cannot control has much to offer those grappling with today's chaotic world。 But who were the Stoics？
In this book， Ryan Holiday and Stephen Hanselman offer a fresh approach to understanding Stoicism through the lives of the people who practiced it - from Cicero to Zeno， Cato to Seneca， Diogenes to Marcus Aurelius。 Through short biographies of all the famous， and lesser-known， Stoics， this book will show what it means to live stoically， and reveal the lessons to be learned from their struggles and successes。 The result is a treasure trove of insights for anyone in search of living a good life。
'In story after page-turning story， Lives of the Stoics brings ancient philosophers to life。' - David Epstein， bestselling author of Range
'Wonderful' - Chris Bosh， two-time NBA Champion
For millennia， Stoicism has been the ancient philosophy that attracts those who seek greatness， from athletes to politicians and everyone in between。 And no wonder: its embrace of self-mastery， virtue and indifference to that which we cannot control has much to offer those grappling with today's chaotic world。 But who were the Stoics？
In this book， Ryan Holiday and Stephen Hanselman offer a fresh approach to understanding Stoicism through the lives of the people who practiced it - from Cicero to Zeno， Cato to Seneca， Diogenes to Marcus Aurelius。 Through short biographies of all the famous， and lesser-known， Stoics， this book will show what it means to live stoically， and reveal the lessons to be learned from their struggles and successes。 The result is a treasure trove of insights for anyone in search of living a good life。
Reviews
Julien Sobczak
，
Short biographies from Zeno to Marcus Aurelius collected from remaining writings。Ryan Holiday is one of the leading figures on modern stoicism， distilling the lessons from the past for modern lives。 I loved his previous trilogy。 I loved his newsletters。 But I was a little disappointed by this book。 I was hoping for more depth。Lives of the Stoics presents short biographies （~10 pages） of 26 ancient Stoics over the five first centuries of Stoicism。What the authors succeeded is in showing how Stoic Short biographies from Zeno to Marcus Aurelius collected from remaining writings。Ryan Holiday is one of the leading figures on modern stoicism， distilling the lessons from the past for modern lives。 I loved his previous trilogy。 I loved his newsletters。 But I was a little disappointed by this book。 I was hoping for more depth。Lives of the Stoics presents short biographies （~10 pages） of 26 ancient Stoics over the five first centuries of Stoicism。What the authors succeeded is in showing how Stoicism contributed to shaping the lives of the protagonists。 Not all information outlived the last two millennia， and authors assembled the remaining pieces to create incomplete puzzles， where the main picture can still be observed and appreciated。 The authors declare in the introduction， “Our aim in these pages is not to achieve strict scholarly accuracy—which is impossible after so many centuries—but to elucidate the moral lessons that can be drawn from the lives of these complicated figures。”Reading from so many lives in the same book helped me appreciate how stoic virtues apply in so many different contexts， and in face of so many adversities。 This is the kind of book we need during hard times like the current epidemic。If you are curious about the history of Stoicism or if you want to understand how Stoicism influenced the lives of our predecessors and how it can help you， this book is a must-read。 In the end， my disappointment comes from my own expectations。 The authors cannot compensate for what history failed to preserve。 The book is far from perfect， but I highly recommend it。 。。。more
Wouter
，
I picked this up a almost a year ago but never managed to read past the first six chapters。 Each chapter is devoted to a single Stoic in Ancient history， and some of them （or most of them） are dull-perhaps both the Stoic and the presentation of his or her past life。 Nevertheless， after a period of neglect， I changed my strategy by first reading about Cicero， Seneca， Aurelius， Cato， and then filling in the blanks。 That was much more enjoyable。 The stories present in Lives of the Stoics are memora I picked this up a almost a year ago but never managed to read past the first six chapters。 Each chapter is devoted to a single Stoic in Ancient history， and some of them （or most of them） are dull-perhaps both the Stoic and the presentation of his or her past life。 Nevertheless， after a period of neglect， I changed my strategy by first reading about Cicero， Seneca， Aurelius， Cato， and then filling in the blanks。 That was much more enjoyable。 The stories present in Lives of the Stoics are memorable， but the writing style is a bit too erudite for my non-native English taste。 It's hard for me to recommend the book， but I did learn many interesting facts from it。 。。。more
Diego Bonifaz
，
Es excelente para aquel que quiere aprender Historia del estoicismo， ya que Ryan selecciona incluso a estoicos que pueden ser muy cuestionados como Cicerón， Diotimo y Aristón， lo que te ayuda a contrastar。 Además usa un seudónimo acorde a las acciones que ellos tuvieron， lo que facilita tu aprendizaje y tu capacidad de retenerlos。El propósito del libro no es enseñarte sobre filosofía estoica， asi que no lo recomiendo si buscas ampliar tales conocimientos， pero es el único libro que comprime la h Es excelente para aquel que quiere aprender Historia del estoicismo， ya que Ryan selecciona incluso a estoicos que pueden ser muy cuestionados como Cicerón， Diotimo y Aristón， lo que te ayuda a contrastar。 Además usa un seudónimo acorde a las acciones que ellos tuvieron， lo que facilita tu aprendizaje y tu capacidad de retenerlos。El propósito del libro no es enseñarte sobre filosofía estoica， asi que no lo recomiendo si buscas ampliar tales conocimientos， pero es el único libro que comprime la historia de la mayoría de ellos， y lo hace de una forma divertida y disfrutable。 。。。more
Ismael Gutierrez
，
Yet another masterpiece by Ryan Holiday。 This is a fascinating compilation of the biographical details available of the most prominent Stoic philosophers， both greeks and latins。 I particularly enjoyed the stance some of them took against despotism and tyranny， Thrasea， in particular， of which I knew very little about。
Jess
，
The short bios in this book are interesting historically and also philosophically。 I enjoyed how accessible the writers made the material。This book set me off in search of more information about these people， and I enjoyed that as well。 Treatment of each person was not consistent， and that frustrated me a bit。
Chris
，
This book is a source of Inspiration and great insight to the lives of great men who practiced and improved stoicism。 Definitely Give this book a read， even study it。 By reading this book you will:1。 Learn timeless principles2。 Understand the reason behind it 3。 See it’s limitation and faultsWhile it is rich in lessons， this book is also entertaining and fascinating。 Another Great work of Ryan Holiday and Stephen Hanselman👏 The Hardcover copy of this book is a beauty。 Everything from the cover t This book is a source of Inspiration and great insight to the lives of great men who practiced and improved stoicism。 Definitely Give this book a read， even study it。 By reading this book you will:1。 Learn timeless principles2。 Understand the reason behind it 3。 See it’s limitation and faultsWhile it is rich in lessons， this book is also entertaining and fascinating。 Another Great work of Ryan Holiday and Stephen Hanselman👏 The Hardcover copy of this book is a beauty。 Everything from the cover to the paper was perfect。This book is exactly what I was looking for， A compilation of short biographies of stoics in the past。 。。。more
Filipe
，
Perfect introduction to Stoicism！
Mike McGinley
，
Great intro to the StoicsTake this for what it is which is an introduction to the important Stoics and a “thumbnail sketch” of their lives， challenges accomplishments， and failings。 It may well inspire readers， as it has me， to take a deeper dive into one or more of the Stoics summarized herein。 Taken in this way the authors succeeded and I enjoyed the journey。
Stephen O'Brien
，
Though I have heard many say that this book was a regurgitation， which I do agree with， it plays an important role in ones own self mastery; a foundation to build upon。 Without a good foundation， we can build ourselves up， yet when the time comes to stand firm， a simple misfortune out of our control can destroy everything。 What this book does is give us many different ideas of what stoicism and philosophy can be and look like。 Cato was iron fisted， standing by his morals and ethics at all times。 Though I have heard many say that this book was a regurgitation， which I do agree with， it plays an important role in ones own self mastery; a foundation to build upon。 Without a good foundation， we can build ourselves up， yet when the time comes to stand firm， a simple misfortune out of our control can destroy everything。 What this book does is give us many different ideas of what stoicism and philosophy can be and look like。 Cato was iron fisted， standing by his morals and ethics at all times。 Epictetus was strong， emotionless， almost too inhuman。 He did not respond to pain。 There was Zeno， who like most of us that strive to be the best we can be， was awoken and finally saw what was important when everything was taken away。 And then there was the most human of them all， Marcus Aurelius。 What I will take from this book is that it is okay to be myself。 My own goals are to learn about myself and improve upon the good character I already have， while fixing the poor character。 It is fruitless to be Marcus Aurelius or Cato or Seneca。 They are not you。 Only you can be you。 Yet these characters， through your own self reflection， can help you identify what you need a work on。 It can help you identify where you will need to build your foundation， and where to stand。 。。。more
Griflet
，
Pg 1
Miglė
，
can't bring myself to finish it - stoicism is one of my favourite branches of philosophy and yet there's something in the way that this book is written that just stops me from genuinely enjoying it， I picked it up time and time again， and I think I just gave up for the last time。 which may be a good thing， not finishing books just for the sake of it， I need to get better at that。 can't bring myself to finish it - stoicism is one of my favourite branches of philosophy and yet there's something in the way that this book is written that just stops me from genuinely enjoying it， I picked it up time and time again， and I think I just gave up for the last time。 which may be a good thing， not finishing books just for the sake of it， I need to get better at that。 。。。more
Brian Beatty
，
Some of the biographies were a bit dry and there is a bit too much added to each that feels like fluff， but in the end I still feel satisfied with knowing more about the individuals and how they lived their ideals （or didn’t）。
Kin Paquibo
，
SB
Timojhen
，
Easy to see this being a book I return to over time。 So much can be learned from those who’ve come before。 Food for thought…。
Christian Angelucci
，
A concise history and short summary of some of the "greatest" people to ever live。 A concise history and short summary of some of the "greatest" people to ever live。 。。。more
Otmane Sabir
，
Didn’t exactly find what I was looking for in this book but it was nonetheless a great joy to read。 As an avid fan of the stoic school of thought， I found in it a wide overview of the history of stoicisms， lessons， and shared core values of iconic stoics。
Manu
，
As almost every philosophy goes， it is a mindset and a way of life。 Though we have tons of literature， perhaps the best lessons of Stoicism are offered in the way Stoics led their lives。 And that's what we get from the book - the time and lives of 26 Stoics - 25 men and 1 woman。 Named after the Stoa Poikile （painted porch） where Zeno and his disciples gathered for discussions， we follow the evolution of the philosophy and its practitioners across ancient history - Zeno （334 BC - 262 BC） to Marcu As almost every philosophy goes， it is a mindset and a way of life。 Though we have tons of literature， perhaps the best lessons of Stoicism are offered in the way Stoics led their lives。 And that's what we get from the book - the time and lives of 26 Stoics - 25 men and 1 woman。 Named after the Stoa Poikile （painted porch） where Zeno and his disciples gathered for discussions， we follow the evolution of the philosophy and its practitioners across ancient history - Zeno （334 BC - 262 BC） to Marcus Aurelius （121 CE - 180 CE）。 While many of them were born in wealthy families， many others were commoners， and for Epictetus， a slave， freedom was not just a metaphor。 His is the life I found most inspiring。 The core tenets of Stoicism - courage， temperance， justice， and wisdom - have remained changed， but how they have been interpreted and how much they have been adhered to is where one can draw lessons from。 From being philosophers who wanted nothing to do with politics and bureaucracy， to a philosopher king， and from being persecuted by despots to being the persecutors of Christians， the contexts of Stoics changed， but there are lessons in each life。 The world has changed or remained unchanged depending on how we frame a context， but the Stoic's focus is on self， and how to be a better person。 In that sense， the philosophy has much to teach us， and help us navigate our lives。'To have but not want， to enjoy without needing。' 'We naturally care what people think of us; we don't want to seem too different， so we acquire the same tastes as everyone else。 We accept what the crowd does so the crowd will accept us。 But in doing this， we weaken ourselves。 We compromise， often without knowing it; we allow ourselves to be bought - without even the benefit of getting paid for it。' "If a person gave away your body to some passerby， you'd be furious，" Epictetus said， yet we so easily hand our mind over to other people， letting them inside our heads or making us feel a certain way。Having read Meditations and Letters from a Stoic earlier， I can see why this book is a bestseller - it delivers accessibility very well。 And thus， it's a great place to start if you want to get familiar with the philosophy and the people who shaped it。 P。S。 Trivia: Marcus Aurelius died on 17/03。 My birthday :） 。。。more
Thomas
，
I enjoyed the vignettes in one of Ryan Holiday's prior books （Ego Is The Enemy， perhaps？ - I can't quite recall which one）， so a whole book dedicated to that sounded like it might be right up my alley。 And it was right up my alley for a time， but this book wasn't all that engaging。 I felt like I was reading from a high school social studies book。 And got about the same level of information from it。 There wasn't anything new here。 I enjoyed the vignettes in one of Ryan Holiday's prior books （Ego Is The Enemy， perhaps？ - I can't quite recall which one）， so a whole book dedicated to that sounded like it might be right up my alley。 And it was right up my alley for a time， but this book wasn't all that engaging。 I felt like I was reading from a high school social studies book。 And got about the same level of information from it。 There wasn't anything new here。 。。。more
Andre Borges
，
It’s one thing to read stoic philosophy it’s a plus to get insight from the life’s of all this philosophers。Super entertaining book， as Ryan already accustomed us to， and I believe this will become my new recommended book as an introduction to stoicism。
Paul Velonis
，
Was okay but expected more， Ryan’s other books were better。
Dianna
，
I am sure I will read this again as it was a lot to digest and some of it passed right through me without taking root。
Davina Fereday
，
Love this
Matthew Binder
，
A book of wiki entries about Stoic philosophers。
Brandon
，
Didn't finish。You gotta move on。 You gotta move on。 Didn't finish。You gotta move on。 You gotta move on。 。。。more
Spmasters
，
Interesting read about the founding and spread of Stoic philosophy。
Ken
，
This is a Solid history of stoic philosophers。 It is Cool to see what each brought to the table。 If you’re a history buff you will most likely like it。 I did feel like it dragged a bit。 A few of the philosophers featured really didn’t bring much to the table。 I think it could have been 50-60 pages shorter。 Overall it was enjoyable， and if you’re a fan of Ryan’s other work it’s worth a read。
Lenin Yee
，
Nice read。 Some interesting facts about a variety of different stoics throughout history， showcasing the basic principles of this philosophy。 It also mentions some of their failures and flaws。It's a good book to just continue to have stoicism on top of mind。 Nice read。 Some interesting facts about a variety of different stoics throughout history， showcasing the basic principles of this philosophy。 It also mentions some of their failures and flaws。It's a good book to just continue to have stoicism on top of mind。 。。。more
finn
，
‘Lives Of The Stoics’ focuses on 26 Stoics and briefly goes over their ideologies and beliefs。 I think this book is perfect for those wanting to get a taste of Stoicism， it wonderfully explores each philosophers ideas in a easy way to read。
Mark Kricheff
，
Not so much stoic philosophy but rather brief biographies of key stoic philosophers。
Ivan Parisi
，