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CHAPTER 7
THE STOICS: EPICTETUS AND MARCUS
AURELIUS
INSTRUCTIONS: Select the best answer according to the text.
TRUE/FALSE
1. Hedonism is the general term for any philosophy that
says that goodness creates pleasure.
2. Aristippus advocated Cyrenaic hedonism.
3. Socrates was a disciple of Epicurus.
4. According to Aristippus, pleasure is always good,
regardless of its source.
5. Epicurus greatly admired Plato and Aristotle.
6. Epicurus argued that some pleasures are inferior to
others.
7. Stoicism originated with Cynicism.
8. The Cynics admired the philosophies of Plato and
Aristotle.
9. Antisthenes was the first Cynic.
10. Antisthenes admired Socrates.
11. Cynics believe that the very essence of society
is corrupt.
12. Unlike the Stoics, the Cynics believed that excessive
desires always lead to unhappiness.
13. Stoicism was founded in Greece and flourished in
Rome.
14. Stoicism was founded by Diogenes.
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15. The two most influential Stoics were a Roman slave
and an emperor.
16. Epictetus was known as Marcus Senecus.
17. Marcus Aurelius was the adopted son of a Roman
emperor.
18. Marcus Aurelius was popular and loved by the Roman
people.
19. The Stoics developed a very precise doctrine of fate that
clearly distinguished between fate and luck.
20. The Stoics believed in a rationally ordered universe.
21. According to the Stoics, we are sparks of the Logos.
22. The Stoics were exceptionally ethnocentric.
23. The Stoics distinguished between good and bad emotions.
24. The Stoics taught that our basic task in life is to free
ourselves from our fate.
25. Epictetus distinguished between control and influence.
26. The Stoics taught that God punishes bad and weak
people with disease and suffering.
MULTIPLE CHOICE
27. For a strict hedonist, _____ .
a. the finest pleasures are rare
b. nothing that is cheap provides genuine pleasure
c. nothing that provides pleasure is bad
d. the best pleasures cost the most but are worth it
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28. According to Aristippus, _____ are the highest possible
good.
a. knowledge and truth
b. wisdom and temperance
c. intellectual gifts
d. physical satisfactions
29. According to the Cyrenaics, the only difference between
two pleasures is _____ .
a. cost
b. consequences
c. intensity
d. there are no differences
30. According to the Cyrenaics, only _____ pleasures make
life worth living.
a. physical
b. spiritual
c. refined
d. intellectual
31. According to the Cyrenaics, the highest good is _____ .
a. whatever pleases me at the moment
b. whatever provides the most pleasure to the most
people
c. whatever pleasure produces the fewest future
complications
d. the pleasure that comes from wisdom
32. Epicurus called his school the _____ .
a. Olive Branch
b. Painted Porch
c. Garden of Delights
d. Garden
33. Epicurus welcomed women to his school _____ .
a. as equals
b. only if they were beautiful
c. only as guests, not as students
d. for a short time and then refused them entry
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34. Epicurus was noted for his _____ life.
a. lusty, passionate
b. luxurious, busy
c. simple, moderate
d. short, tragic
35. Although Stoicism is theoretically inconsistent when it
advises us to accept our fate on one hand and then advises
us to live wisely on the other, _____ .
a. that is just part of the Stoics rejection
of reason
b. Stoics justify inconsistency as fated
c. their position is consistent with common
experience
d. Stoics point out that the Logos (God)
mocks consistency as a hobgoblin of
little minds
36. Philosophers distinguish between what is desired and
what is _____ .
a. forgotten
b. remembered
c. desirable
d. preferred
37. Epicurus taught that _____ produce the finest life.
a. the pleasures of the flesh
b. the pleasures of the mind
c. the quiet pleasures of moderation
d. the myriad enjoyments of subtle luxuries
38. Stoicism was founded by _____ .
a. Socrates
b. Diogenes
c. Antisthenes
d. Zeno
39. Cynicism was founded by _____ .
a. Socrates
b. Diogenes
c. Antisthenes
d. Zeno
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40. The most famous of the Cynics was _____ .
a. Socrates
b. Diogenes
c. Antisthenes
d. Zeno
41. _____ was the model on which Antisthenes built his
philosophy.
a. Socrates
b. Diogenes
c. Seneca
d. Zeno
42. The word cynic comes from the Greek word for _____ .
a. dog
b. porch
c. doubter
d. bird
43. The Cynics believed that the very essence of civilization
is _____ .
a. love
b. corrupt
c. the search for justice
d. harmony
44. The Cynics believed that material wealth _____ .
a. is necessary for happiness
b. comes only through luck
c. weakens people
d. is a proper reward for pursuing truth
45. Diogenes lived in an abandoned _____ .
a. boat
b. villa
c. shoe
d. wine barrel
46. According to the Cynics, what happiness is possible
comes from _____ .
a. self-control
b. luck
c. God
d. friendship
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47. The Cynics taught that the best way to maximize
happiness is to minimize _____ .
a. abstract speculation and pointless philosophizing
b. contact with conventional society
c. contact with radical members of society
d. time alone
48. Stoicism flourished in _____ .
a. Rome
b. Greece
c. Persia
d. Judea
49. Originally, the term Stoic referred to _____ .
a. eaters of flesh
b. tellers of tales
c. those who show no fear
d. men of the porch
50. The Romans were attracted by Stoicism s _____ .
a. speculative metaphysics
b. emphasis on duty and self-control
c. Greco-Christian respect for God
d. penchant for political analysis
51. Which one of the following was NOT a Stoic?
a. Seneca
b. Cato
c. Cicero
d. Nero
52. Epictetus was brought to Rome as a(n) _____ .
a. senator
b. teacher
c. slave
d. orator
53. Epictetus s _____ was carried into battle
by Roman soldiers.
a. Field Guide
b. Meditations
c. Golden Maxims
d. Manual
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54. Marcus Aurelius addressed his Meditations
_____ .
a. For the Wise
b. To My Wife
c. To Myself
d. To Whomever Finds These
55. The Stoics thought that _____ governs the
universe.
a. sophrosyne
b. logos
c. psyche
d. arete
56. According to the Stoics, serenity comes to that
individual whose will _____ .
a. is in accord with World Reason
b. is in accord with itself
c. commands fate to appease it
d. is guided by the mystes
57. Stoics believed that events do not just happen
for no reason but _____ .
a. are commanded by the will
b. are the result of hard work
c. happen in accord with World Reason
d. only seem to happen
58. According to the Stoics, _____ is under our control.
a. our fate
b. our life
c. our will
d. the destiny of those under our care
59. To be disinterested is to _____ .
a. be bored
b. have no basis for comparison
c. have no personal attachments
d. have a vice, according to the Stoics
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60. The Stoics viewed all human beings as members
of a(n) _____ .
a. metropolis
b. logopolis
c. aereopolis
d. cosmopolis
61. According to the Stoics, our lives are _____ but
our wills are _____ .
a. free/holy
b. fated/God s
c. fated/free
d. free/fated
62. In understanding Stoicism, it helps to distinguish
between control and _____ .
a. self-control
b. influence
c. panic
d. loss
63. Epictetus implies that we have _____ over
our actions.
a. absolute control
b. some control
c. some influence
d. no influence
64. Epictetus advises us to concentrate on
controlling _____ .
a. our attitudes
b. our lives
c. our destiny
d. our friends reactions to our actions
65. The goal of Stoicism is _____ .
a. happiness
b. power
c. serenity
d. salvation
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66. Among the things under our control,
Epictetus lists _____ .
a. body
b. property
c. reputation
d. desire
67. Speaking of relationships, Epictetus says,
You will be damaged _____ .
a. when you shall think that you are damaged
b. whenever the Logos wishes that you shall be
c. whenever a spouse or friend betrays you for another
d. by any relationship based on mutual attraction
68. According to the Stoics, _____ .
a. freedom is just another word for nothing left to lose
b. everything has a price
c. the wise man knows how to bargain with destiny
d. nature deprives some people of the relationships
necessary for their happiness
69. The Stoics teach that _____ is a sign of God s respect.
a. hardship
b. health
c. wisdom
d. love
70. Viktor Frankl refers to his brand of psychotherapy
as _____ .
a. rational-emotive therapy
b. reality therapy
c. logotherapy
d. stoatherapy
71. Viktor Frankl s theory is based in part on his
experiences _____ .
a. in the army
b. in the seminary
c. in a concentration camp
d. as a prisoner of war
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72. Frankl says, Suffering ceases to be suffering in
some way at the moment _____ .
a. we reach bliss
b. it finds a meaning
c. God delivers the sufferer
d. we regain control
73. James Bond Stockdale cites lessons from Epictetus as
one of the things that helped him survive _____ .
a. his wife s death from cancer
b. torture in a Nazi concentration camp
c. a severe birth defect
d. seven and one-half years as a prisoner of war
74. James Bond Stockdale suggests that the best defense
against those who would exert moral leverage over
us is to _____ .
a. detach from them; treat them with indifference
b. keep ourselves morally clean
c. remind them that we are all equally flawed
d. accept ourselves as we are by refusing to buy into
perfectionism
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Chapter 7
THE STOICS: EPICTETUS AND MARCUS AURELIUS
1. Construct a debate about happiness between Aristippus and
Socrates. Include actual statements made by both philosophers. *
2. In your own words, give a Cyrenaic argument in favor of living
for the moment. Then make a convincing counterargument against
living for the moment.
3. What is Epicureanism, and how does it differ from
Cyrenaicism?
4. Why did Epictetus admire the Cynic so much? In what sense is
the Cynic a scout for humanity?
5. Explain how Cynicism influenced Stoicism. Be specific. What
is the relationship of Socrates to Cynicism and Stoicism?
6. Compare and contrast Hedonism, Cynicism, and Stoicism.
7. What is the Stoic Logos? How are the Logos and fate related in
Stoicism? Identify and discuss possible problems with the Stoic
notion of fate. *
8. What do the Stoics think falls under our control? What does not
fall under our control? Do you agree? Why or why not? Analyze the
relationship between influence and control. *
9. Discuss the difference between avoidable and unavoidable
suffering. How can we tell which is which? Why does it matter?
(Does it matter?) Explain. *
10. Explain the Stoic attitude toward relationships. Explain how it
differs from contemporary attitudes. Analyze both views. *
11. What does Seneca mean when he says I count you unfortunate
because you have never been unfortunate ? Is he right? Explain. *
12. Compare and contrast Tao (Chapter 1) and the Stoic Logos. *
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CHAPTER 7 ANSWERS