The Thing to Be Exercised in Stoicism

 

The Thing to Be Exercised in Stoicism

The thing to be exercised in Stoicism is the rational faculty of choice, prohairesis.

More precisely, prohairesis is the faculty by which we examine impressions, judge propositions, give or withhold assent, and determine our impulses toward action.

Epictetus states the central point in Discourses 1.1: the proper work of the rational being concerns the use of impressions. External things are not the primary objects of moral exercise; the use we make of our impressions is.

The Distinctions

• Prohairesis: The rational faculty of choice; the principal object of Stoic cultivation.
• Assent: Accepting an impression's propositional content as true. This is a central operation through which prohairesis is exercised.
• Judgment: The evaluation of what an impression means and whether its proposition is true.
• Impulse: The practical movement toward or away from something, arising through assent and determining action.
• Action: The resulting conduct through which the use of one's rational faculty becomes manifest.

What Does Exercising It Mean?

It means repeatedly examining impressions and exercising one's capacity to judge correctly rather than accepting appearances uncritically. One learns to distinguish virtue and vice from externals, which are neither good nor evil in themselves.

The purpose is not simply to become calmer, more resilient, or less emotionally reactive. It is to achieve excellence in the use of one's rational faculty, so that one's judgments and actions correspond to what is true and morally right.

In Epictetus's formulation, the task is to make one's prohairesis conform to reason.

The Essential Point

Stoicism is not primarily the exercise of the body, the management of emotions, or the acquisition of external skills. It is the exercise and improvement of the rational faculty responsible for judgment and choice.