The Enchiridion By Epictetus Analysis

The literal translation of the word “Enchiridion” is “the manual.” The Enchiridion was written by Epictetus who was a greek slave before becoming a philosopher. In fact, Epictetus is not his proper name. The word Epictetus translates to mean “slave” or “servant” in Greek. He taught stoic philosophy in Rome and gained many disciples. One of his disciples is named Arian of Nicomedia, who received Epictetus’ teachings and published them into eight books creating the Enchiridion. The Enchiridion contains many influential parts, but the three important sections are sections XIV, V, and IX. In section 14, Epictetus is saying that everything is not in your power and you do not control everything in this world. He explains that one should not wish the …show more content…
If you have a lameness in the leg, it does not mean that it should diminish your will. The body should not affect the mind. Once again, sickness is completely out of your control but the mind is a paradise in itself. You cannot control external things but rather the internal will of yourself. The external things do not judge who you are and should not judge how you view yourself. Viewing yourself with a negative concept, will diminish and hurt your will, which is completely in your control. There are many more subjects included in Epictetus’ work including outward experiences and social control. The value of this work is that it is pragmatic and non-metaphysical. You should act simply as adults rather than a child in different situations. The idea put forth in the manual are extremely interesting to contain. This book actually could have been the blueprint for civil disobedience for Ghandi and Dr. Martin Luther King. The manual concludes with Epictetus stating to strive to be like Socrates who was perfect in reason. He almost portrays Socrates as God which one always strives to be like in all