Sunday, January 18, 2026

HOW THE SIX COMMITMENTS OPERATE OUTSIDE OF STOICISM


HOW THE SIX COMMITMENTS OPERATE OUTSIDE OF STOICISM

This is an excellent question that reveals something crucial: the six commitments aren't "Stoic" commitments - they're classical philosophical commitments that enable multiple ancient ethical systems, not just Stoicism.

THE KEY INSIGHT

The six commitments are the metaphysical infrastructure of ancient philosophy generally. They make possible:

  • Stoicism
  • Platonism
  • Aristotelianism
  • Epicureanism (partially - they reject some)
  • Classical virtue ethics broadly

They're the shared operating system of ancient philosophy, not proprietary Stoic software.

1. IN PLATONISM

How the Six Commitments Operate:

Dualism (even stronger):

  • Not just mind/body distinction
  • World of Forms vs. Material world
  • Soul can exist independently of body (immortality)
  • Enables: Soul's recollection of Forms, ascent to intelligible realm

Libertarian Freedom:

  • Soul chooses which realm to orient toward (Forms or material)
  • Can choose philosophy (turn toward Forms) or remain in cave
  • Enables: Moral responsibility, education as "turning the soul"

Correspondence:

  • True judgments correspond to Forms (ultimate reality)
  • False judgments fail to grasp Forms
  • Enables: Knowledge vs. opinion distinction, dialectic

Moral Realism:

  • Form of the Good exists objectively
  • Justice, Courage, Temperance are real Forms
  • Enables: Philosopher-kings can know objective good, moral education possible

Foundationalism:

  • Forms are unhypothetical first principles
  • Dialectic ascends to Form of the Good (ultimate foundation)
  • Enables: Knowledge (epistēmē) vs. mere belief (doxa)

Intuitionism:

  • Direct intellectual vision (noēsis) of Forms
  • Soul "recollects" what it knew before embodiment
  • Enables: Recognition of justice itself (not just instances), philosophical insight

Result: Platonic ethics (return to Forms, escape material world, philosopher-king) is impossible without these six.

2. IN ARISTOTELIANISM

How the Six Commitments Operate:

Dualism (modified):

  • Not substance dualism (soul = form of body)
  • But: Rational soul distinct from material processes
  • Enables: Contemplation (theōria) as highest activity, nous as divine element

Libertarian Freedom:

  • Deliberation (bouleusis) requires real alternatives
  • Can choose virtue or vice (up to us - eph' hēmin)
  • Enables: Moral responsibility, virtue as choice, habituation works

Correspondence:

  • Truth = saying of what is that it is (Metaphysics)
  • Practical wisdom (phronēsis) grasps what is truly good
  • Enables: Prudential judgment, mean relative to circumstances

Moral Realism:

  • Virtues are objective excellences (aretai)
  • Human function (ergon) determines good objectively
  • Enables: Eudaimonia as objective flourishing, natural teleology

Foundationalism:

  • First principles (archai) known by nous
  • Practical wisdom grasps ends (not just means)
  • Enables: Science (demonstration from first principles), ethics has foundations

Intuitionism:

  • Nous grasps first principles immediately
  • Phronēsis perceives the particular (this is courageous act)
  • Enables: Moral perception, practical wisdom, recognition of mean

Result: Aristotelian virtue ethics (habituation to eudaimonia through phronēsis) is impossible without these six.

3. IN EPICUREANISM (Partial Acceptance)

Which Commitments Epicureans Accept:

Correspondence (YES):

  • Truth corresponds to reality (atomic theory is true)
  • Senses reliably report facts
  • Enables: Natural philosophy, atomism

Foundationalism (YES):

  • Basic beliefs (prolēpseis) terminate regress
  • Sensation = criterion of truth
  • Enables: Knowledge without infinite regress

Moral Realism (MODIFIED):

  • Pleasure objectively good (but subjective in content)
  • Pain objectively bad
  • Enables: Hedonism as objective standard (though content varies)

Which Commitments Epicureans Reject:

Dualism (REJECT):

  • Soul is material (composed of atoms)
  • Mind = body (physicalism)
  • Dies with body

Libertarian Freedom (REJECT):

  • Swerve (clinamen) introduces randomness, not libertarian choice
  • Actions follow from atomic motions + random swerves
  • Compatibilist or determinist (debated)

Intuitionism (REJECT):

  • All knowledge from sensation (empiricism)
  • No a priori moral knowledge
  • Must derive everything from observation

Result: Epicurean ethics (ataraxia through pleasure, materialism, withdrawal) works differently - succeeds in some areas (correspondence, foundation), fails in others (can't ground responsibility without freedom, can't escape determinism).

4. IN CLASSICAL VIRTUE ETHICS GENERALLY

The Shared Infrastructure:

All classical virtue ethics traditions (Stoic, Platonic, Aristotelian, even Cynic) share:

The Package:

  1. Dualism → Rational soul distinct from body/world
  2. Libertarian Freedom → Virtue = choice (not determined)
  3. Correspondence → Can know what's truly good (not just opinion)
  4. Moral Realism → Virtues are objective excellences
  5. Foundationalism → Virtue = foundational good (terminates "why be virtuous?")
  6. Intuitionism → Wise person recognizes virtue/vice immediately

What This Enables:

  • Moral education works (can develop virtue through training)
  • Responsibility is real (could have chosen otherwise)
  • Sage is possible (perfect virtue achievable in principle)
  • Eudaimonia objective (not subjective preference)
  • Practical wisdom (immediate recognition of right action)

What Distinguishes Each Tradition:

  • Content of virtue differs (Stoic: only virtue good vs. Aristotle: virtue + externals)
  • Metaphysics differs (Platonic Forms vs. Aristotelian hylomorphism vs. Stoic materialism)
  • Psychology differs (Stoic unified soul vs. Platonic/Aristotelian parts)

But all require the same six commitments to function.

5. IN CONTEMPORARY VIRTUE ETHICS (Problems)

Modern Virtue Ethics Without Full Commitments:

Contemporary virtue ethicists (Foot, Hursthouse, MacIntyre) try to revive virtue ethics without fully accepting the six commitments:

What They Accept:

  • Some moral realism (virtues objectively good)
  • Some foundationalism (virtue as foundational)
  • Correspondence (usually)

What They Often Reject or Weaken:

  • Dualism → Accept physicalism (Foot)
  • Libertarian Freedom → Accept compatibilism (most)
  • Intuitionism → Prefer empiricism/naturalism

The Result:

  • Weakened system (virtue ethics without full metaphysical support)
  • Tension (trying to ground virtue in physicalist/compatibilist framework)
  • Less robust than ancient versions

Example - Philippa Foot:

  • Wants objective virtues (moral realism)
  • But: physicalist about mind, naturalist about ethics
  • Problem: Hard to ground objective virtues in purely natural facts
  • Missing: Dualism, libertarian freedom, intuitionism

6. OUTSIDE ETHICS: IN EPISTEMOLOGY

The Six Commitments Enable Classical Epistemology:

Foundationalism:

  • Enables: Aristotelian science (demonstration from first principles)
  • Enables: Euclidean geometry (axioms → theorems)
  • Enables: Any deductive system with bedrock

Intuitionism:

  • Enables: Nous grasping first principles (Aristotle)
  • Enables: Rational insight into necessary truths
  • Enables: Non-empirical knowledge (mathematics, logic)

Correspondence:

  • Enables: Truth as adequatio (matching mind to reality)
  • Enables: Realism about external world
  • Enables: Objective knowledge possible

Without these: Modern epistemology struggles with:

  • Infinite regress (coherentism as response)
  • Skepticism (can't escape circle)
  • Relativism (no objective truth)

7. THE BROADER PATTERN

The Six Commitments as Classical Philosophy's Foundation:

SIX COMMITMENTS (Metaphysical Infrastructure)

    ↓

ENABLES MULTIPLE SYSTEMS

    ├─ Stoicism (virtue alone sufficient)

    ├─ Platonism (return to Forms)

    ├─ Aristotelianism (eudaimonia through virtue + externals)

    ├─ Classical epistemology (foundationalism + intuitionism)

    └─ Ancient science (first principles → demonstration)

    

MODERN REJECTION (1600-present)

    ↓

COLLAPSES ALL SYSTEMS SIMULTANEOUSLY

    ├─ Virtue ethics loses ground

    ├─ Foundationalism replaced by coherentism

    ├─ Intuitionism replaced by empiricism

    └─ Freedom becomes compatibilism/determinism

8. CRITICAL INSIGHT

Why This Matters:

The six commitments aren't Stoic innovations. They're the shared operating system of ancient philosophy.

Sterling's contribution: Not inventing these (they're classical), but showing they're NECESSARY for Stoic practice specifically.

The broader point: When modernity rejected these (1600+), it didn't just make Stoicism impossible - it made all of ancient philosophy impossible:

  • Can't do Platonic ascent without dualism + intuitionism
  • Can't do Aristotelian virtue ethics without freedom + moral realism
  • Can't do ancient epistemology without foundationalism + intuitionism
  • Can't do ancient science without correspondence + foundationalism

Modern philosophy = systematic rejection of the classical infrastructure → all ancient systems collapse simultaneously.

9. SPECIFIC EXAMPLES OUTSIDE STOICISM

Platonic Education (Republic):

Requires ALL SIX:

  1. Dualism → Soul can turn from shadows to Forms
  2. Freedom → Can choose to leave cave or stay
  3. Correspondence → True knowledge matches Forms
  4. Realism → Form of Good exists objectively
  5. Foundationalism → Form of Good = ultimate foundation
  6. Intuitionism → Direct vision of Forms (noēsis)

Without any one: Platonic education incoherent.

Aristotelian Phronēsis (Practical Wisdom):

Requires ALL SIX:

  1. Dualism → Rational soul distinct from appetites
  2. Freedom → Can deliberate and choose
  3. Correspondence → Judgment matches objective good
  4. Realism → Mean objectively exists
  5. Foundationalism → Eudaimonia = ultimate end (terminates "why?")
  6. Intuitionism → Perceives particular as instance of universal (this = courageous)

Without any one: Phronēsis impossible.

10. SUMMARY TABLE

Commitment Stoicism Platonism Aristotelianism Epicureanism Modern Virtue Ethics
Dualism ✓ (prohairesis distinct) ✓✓ (Forms + soul) ✓ (modified) ✗ (materialism) ✗ (usually physicalist)
Freedom ✓ (libertarian) ✓ (soul chooses) ✓ (eph' hēmin) ✗ (swerve/determined) ✗ (usually compatibilist)
Correspondence ✓ (test vs reality) ✓ (match Forms) ✓ (what is/is) ✓ (senses reliable) ✓ (usually)
Moral Realism ✓ (virtue objectively good) ✓✓ (Form of Good) ✓ (objective aretai) ~ (pleasure good) ✓ (usually)
Foundationalism ✓ (Th 10 axiomatic) ✓✓ (unhypothetical) ✓ (nous grasps archai) ✓ (prolēpseis) ~ (weakened)
Intuitionism ✓ (recognize virtue) ✓✓ (noēsis) ✓ (nous + phronēsis) ✗ (empiricism) ✗ (usually naturalist)
System Works? YES YES YES PARTIAL WEAKENED

CONCLUSION

The six commitments operate outside Stoicism by providing the metaphysical foundation for:

  1. All classical virtue ethics (Platonic, Aristotelian, Stoic)
  2. Classical epistemology (foundationalism + intuitionism)
  3. Ancient science (demonstration from first principles)
  4. Any system requiring: objective morality, real responsibility, non-empirical knowledge, ultimate foundations

They're not "Stoic commitments" - they're classical philosophy's operating system.

Sterling's insight: These aren't optional for Stoicism - they're necessary conditions. But this necessity extends beyond Stoicism to all of ancient philosophy.

Modern philosophy's rejection (1600+) didn't just kill Stoicism - it killed the entire classical tradition simultaneously.

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