What is Epictetus (埃皮克提图)?
Epictetus was a Greek Stoic teacher whose surviving teachings were recorded by his student Arrian. His central concerns include practical choice, assent, judgment, and what is up to us—not guaranteed control of external events.
Some things are in our control and others not.
— Enchiridion, Chapter 1 (Epictetus)
Key Takeaways
- Epictetus (c. 50–135 CE) was a Greek Stoic teacher who taught in Nicopolis after earlier teaching in Rome.
- His surviving teachings were recorded by his student Arrian in the Discourses and the Enchiridion (Handbook).
- His central concerns include prohairesis, assent, judgment, and what is up to us—not guaranteed resilience or control of outcomes.
Understanding Epictetus
Epictetus (c. 50–135 CE) was a Greek Stoic teacher who had been enslaved and later taught in Rome and Nicopolis. The surviving Discourses and Enchiridion were recorded and compiled by his student Arrian; they are not writings preserved in Epictetus's own hand. Epictetus examines prohairesis—one's capacity for practical choice—and the discipline of withholding or giving assent to impressions. The distinction between what is up to us and what is not concerns responsibility for judgment and conduct, not unrestricted autonomous will or control over external results.
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Further Reading
Related Guides
- What is Ataraxia? — Epictetus taught the path to ataraxia
- What is Stoic Sage? — Epictetus described the sage
Frequently Asked Questions
Who was Epictetus?
Epictetus was a Greek Stoic teacher whose life included enslavement, manumission, teaching in Rome, and a later school in Nicopolis. His teachings survive mainly through records made by Arrian.
What is Epictetus's central teaching?
He repeatedly asks students to examine impressions, assent, choice, and what is up to them. This is a discipline of judgment and conduct, not a promise that external events will become controllable or that distress will disappear.
Also Known As
Chinese: 埃皮克提图. 埃皮克提图, Epiktetos