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PHILOSOPHY PROFILE

Epictetus

First to second century CE

START WITH THE PUZZLE

Can we be free by governing assent to impressions even when external events are not ours to choose?

Evidence-backed moments
2
Timeline events
1
Verified places
0

This is a guided intellectual story assembled from verified claims, works, and events in which this thinker actually appears. It avoids filling gaps with a generic encyclopedia biography.

Why this thinker is worth following

Story 1Can we be responsible if we could not have done otherwise?

Epictetus — What is up to us is judgment and volition

The question that opens it

Can we be free by governing assent to impressions even when external events are not ours to choose?

Follow the argument, not just the name
  1. 1

    Epictetus centers personal freedom on prohairesis, the capacity for volition, and the correct use of impressions.

    Check the evidence

    This is an evidence-linked editorial account, not a direct quotation.

    • Epictetus

      Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

      Locator: Introduction; §4.2 Prohairesis

      Open source
  2. 2

    His three areas of training include impulses to act, desire, and assent disciplined against deception and hasty judgment.

    Check the evidence

    This is an evidence-linked editorial account, not a direct quotation.

    • Epictetus

      Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

      Locator: §4.1 The Three Areas of Study

      Open source
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Decisive moments in time

  1. Early second century

    Arrian's records of Epictetus' teaching preserve a discipline of volition and freedom.

    PerspectiveOpen in question

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