What was stoicism about? and who started it?

Question

What was stoicism about? and who started it?

All information is appreciated.

Answer 1

Stoicism is a school of philosophy, the founding of which is associated with Zeno of Citium, which became the foremost popular philosophy among the educated elite in the Greco-Roman Empire,[1] to the point where, in the words of Gilbert Murray, "nearly all the successors of Alexander [...] professed themselves Stoics."[2] It teaches that self-control, fortitude and detachment from distracting emotions, sometimes interpreted as an indifference to pleasure or pain, allows one to become a clear thinker, level-headed and unbiased. A primary aspect of Stoicism would be described as improving the individual’s spiritual well-being. Virtue, reason, and natural law are prime directives. By mastering passions and emotions, Stoics believe it is possible to overcome the discord of the outside world and find peace within oneself. Stoicism holds that passion distorts truth, and that the pursuit of truth is virtuous. Greek philosophers such as Cleanthes, Chrysippus, and later Roman thinkers such as Cicero, Seneca the Younger, Marcus Aurelius, Cato the Younger, Dio Chrysostom, and Epictetus are associated with Stoicism. In Cicero's case, it should be emphasised that while he shared many of the moral tenets of Stoicism, he was not a Stoic himself but an eclectic. Stoic philosophy is usually contrasted with Epicureanism. The term "Stoicism" is derived from the word "stoa," which means "porch," which is where Zeno began teaching in about 300 B.C.

Answer 2

Stoicism is a school of philosophy founded by Zeno of Citium. The most well known Stoic was the Emperor Marcus Aurelius. Basically is is a philosophy that disdains worldly things.

Answer 3

Read the written works of Epictitus and Marcus Aurelius.