Complete Works

Epictetus was a Stoic philosopher of antiquity, and this volume gathers everything of his that has survived. He was born into slavery around 50 CE. After gaining his freedom, he began teaching philosophy, and when he was later expelled from Rome, he spent the rest of his life teaching and living in Greece. He is widely regarded as the leading voice of Stoicism.

Two works make up his surviving output. The Discourses preserve his spoken lectures, which his pupil Arrian heard and recorded. The Handbook is Arrian's own condensed account of the core of Epictetus's teaching.

The central argument of the Discourses is that well-being depends on distinguishing what lies within our power from what does not. Our inner states and our reactions to events belong to us, while the events themselves are allotted to us by a benevolent divine power. Our bodies, possessions and families should be regarded as matters of indifference, and our task is to make the most of them.

Taken together, the two texts function as a practical manual for moral growth. Epictetus sets out the training and daily practices that students must undertake to enrich and deepen their lives, and he addresses how to face death, exile, difficult people, the moods of the emperor, fear and illness. Robin Waterfield edited and translated the edition.