@Belacqua wrote "
Plutarch, Cicero, Hierocles, Marcus Aurelius, Arius Didymus, and other Stoic writers discuss a universal cosmopolitanism. This extends our responsibility to others beyond our own family or polis to cover all of humanity. It may be different from what we modern people think of as compassion -- Stoics wouldn't necessarily "feel your pain." But they would acknowledge others' pain and feel a mutual responsibility.
I think you've hit the nail on the head by pointing out that the focus is on being moral yourself. Personal virtue is the goal. But personal virtue absolutely excludes selfishness, greed, and cruelty. "
- Honestly I wish that the Stoics had included Compassion among the virtues, however from my reading it seems like many Stoics were naturally sensitive, empathetic people who may have suffered somewhat from this trait and were sort of arming themselves against undue suffering by focusing on other virtues. Ryan Holiday points out that many Stoics endured losses most of us will not experience in the modern world (at least in developed nations) like the deaths of several of their own young children. I'm currently reading Marcus Aurelius (Meditations) and I find him to be perhaps my favourite Stoic -- not just because of what he said and did, but what he did NOT do. Obviously other Roman Emperors used their power to fully indulge themselves, including in vices like lust, intemperance and cruelty. MA fought against even allowing himself to linger in bed in the mornings! I'm not sure I would have that kind of virtue in his position, lol.
Plutarch, Cicero, Hierocles, Marcus Aurelius, Arius Didymus, and other Stoic writers discuss a universal cosmopolitanism. This extends our responsibility to others beyond our own family or polis to cover all of humanity. It may be different from what we modern people think of as compassion -- Stoics wouldn't necessarily "feel your pain." But they would acknowledge others' pain and feel a mutual responsibility.
I think you've hit the nail on the head by pointing out that the focus is on being moral yourself. Personal virtue is the goal. But personal virtue absolutely excludes selfishness, greed, and cruelty. "
- Honestly I wish that the Stoics had included Compassion among the virtues, however from my reading it seems like many Stoics were naturally sensitive, empathetic people who may have suffered somewhat from this trait and were sort of arming themselves against undue suffering by focusing on other virtues. Ryan Holiday points out that many Stoics endured losses most of us will not experience in the modern world (at least in developed nations) like the deaths of several of their own young children. I'm currently reading Marcus Aurelius (Meditations) and I find him to be perhaps my favourite Stoic -- not just because of what he said and did, but what he did NOT do. Obviously other Roman Emperors used their power to fully indulge themselves, including in vices like lust, intemperance and cruelty. MA fought against even allowing himself to linger in bed in the mornings! I'm not sure I would have that kind of virtue in his position, lol.