Discourses · Chapter
Against Those Who Eagerly Seek Preferment at Rome explained
Epictetus contrasts the relentless ambition of Roman officials pursuing worldly preferment with the philosophical pursuit of self-knowledge and understanding one's place in the universe.
What happens
Epictetus contrasts the relentless ambition of Roman officials pursuing worldly preferment with the philosophical pursuit of self-knowledge and understanding one's place in the universe. He recounts the story of an older man who, despite vowing to live quietly after exile, immediately returns to political scheming upon receiving letters from Caesar. Epictetus urges his students to apply the same energy to studying philosophy—learning from Chrysippus about the administration of the world and the nature of good and bad—as others devote to grain quotas and land deals.
Themes in this chapter
Desire and Aversion
The older man's desire for political preferment overcomes his earlier resolution to live quietly, illustrating how unchecked desire leads to self-betrayal.
Philosophy as Practical Discipline
Epictetus contrasts the practical discipline of philosophy—studying one's nature and the cosmos—with the worldly 'business' of Roman politics, urging equal zeal for self-examination.
Characters to notice
- Epictetus
Narrator and teacher; uses a personal anecdote about an older acquaintance to illustrate the seduction of political ambition.
- Caesar
The Roman emperor whose letters summon the older man back to political life, symbolizing the pull of worldly power.
- Chrysippus
Referenced as the Stoic authority from whom one should learn about the administration of the world and the nature of good and bad.
Key passages
“If we applied ourselves as busily to our own work as the old men at Rome do to those matters about which they are employed, perhaps we also might accomplish something.”
If we devoted as much energy to our philosophical duties as Roman officials devote to their political careers, we might achieve real progress.
Epictetus opens by drawing a direct parallel between worldly ambition and philosophical diligence.
“I wish that I were now by his side to remind him of what he said when he was passing this way, and to tell him how much better a seer I am than he is.”
I wish I could confront him now and prove that my prediction about his return to politics was more accurate than his own promise.
Epictetus reflects on his accurate foresight regarding the older man's relapse into ambition.
“I entreat you to learn from Chrysippus what is the administration of the world, and what place in it the rational animal holds; consider also who you are, and what is the nature of your good and bad.”
I beg you to study Chrysippus to understand how the universe is governed, the role of rational beings within it, and to examine your own identity and what truly constitutes good and evil.
Epictetus contrasts the trivial petition for grain export with the profound inquiry into self and cosmos that philosophy demands.