What is the opposite of stoic? (2024)

FAQs

What is the opposite of stoic? ›

We have listed all the opposite words for stoic alphabetically. agitated. aroused. excited. flustered.

Opposite of not easily upset or excited. excitable. agitated.

Stoicism is a school of philosophy that hails from ancient Greece and Rome in the early parts of the 3rd century, BC. It is a philosophy of life that maximizes positive emotions, reduces negative emotions and helps individuals to hone their virtues of character.

Stoicism and Hedonism are two opposing ideologies — yet they seem so similar to the untrained eye. A Hedonist lives for pleasure and does whatever they want in the moment. Likewise, a Stoic lives for the moment. The difference is in their end goal.

The modern definition of a stoic (lower case) mindset is described as “a person who can endure pain or hardship without showing their feelings or complaining.”

Stoicism is a selfish philosophy, not caring about the common well-being. It is true that the Stoic's first concern is his own balance, and that love of people does not occupy the philosophy's first place. However, this selfishness is relative because the Stoic remains a Man, and the Man is sociable by nature.

Being stoic is being calm and almost without any emotion. When you're stoic, you don't show what you're feeling and you also accept whatever is happening. The noun stoic is a person who's not very emotional. The adjective stoic describes any person, action, or thing that seems emotionless and almost blank.

Stoicism, as we have said, is not the elimination of all emotion. It's the regulation of them. Effectively, as Nassim Taleb has said, it's the domestication of your urges and impulses and knee-jerk reactions.

It's important to remember that for the Stoics external misfortunes were not actually negative but indifferent. And only their reaction to the events could be good or bad. They trained themselves mentally to be able to respond well when adversity hit them.

One of the most famous Stoic slogans says that: Anger does us more harm than the things about which we're angry. We eat our own hearts when we give in to anger, as philosophers used to say. It's self-destructive. The consequences of our anger might harm others but we also harm ourselves.

Can stoic people love? ›

The point is: The Stoics loved deeply and unashamedly, this is impossible to argue against. However, they did so in their own unique way. In contrast to the Romantic, who understands love basically as unrequited love, the Stoic approaches the emotions, love included, from within a philosophical outlook.

The problem, however, is that Stoicism endorses determinism — the view that our actions and choices are necessitated by factors beyond our control. So, strictly speaking, nothing is up to us.

The opposition began under Nero, and continued under the Flavian emperors, primarily Vespasian and Domitian, provoking the trials of Stoic senators and the expulsions of philosophers from Rome.

Stoicism encourages people to follow their instincts and use logic as a tool for self-analysis, while nihilism encourages individuals to make their own decisions.

Stoicism and Buddhism are two remarkably similar philosophies that were created independently thousands of miles apart. Buddhism was founded in present-day Nepal around 500 B.C and Stoicism began in Athens, Greece around 300 B.C.

And Stoics never allow themselves to get upset over things that occur frequently and naturally. 3 — They remain calm in the face of chaos. Someone who isn't a Stoic will panic when things go wrong.

However, it wouldn't be accurate to say that Stoicism appeals only to quieter, introverted types. In fact, both introverts and extroverts exhibit characteristics that align well with being a practicing Stoic.

Ancient Stoic women may be largely absent from our history books, but modern Stoic women are vocal and influential. Our events offer a unique opportunity to hear from leading Stoic women (and Stoics in general) as they share their stories, insight and expertise delivered through inspiring talks with a practical focus.

It's all in your head. As Epictetus would say, “another person will not do you harm unless you wish it; you will be harmed at just that time at which you take yourself to be harmed.” Third, the Stoic resists the impulse to respond to rudeness in kind. They don't hate a hater, they don't treat a jerk like a jerk.

We don't consider that there might be others who might consider us annoying. If someone annoys us, instead of getting upset with them, we can pause and ponder our own shortcomings. Doing so will make us more tolerant and compassionate, not only towards the person who annoyed us but towards ourselves as well.

How do Stoics deal with toxic people? ›

The great Stoic philosopher, Epictetus, said this in his Manual For Living: “Avoid fraternizing with people who don't share your values. Prolonged association with those with false ideas can only tarnish your thinking.” It's something I truly live by.

In addition to the conceptual notions of unity and social duty on a large-scale, Stoicism promotes empathy and understanding in our interpersonal relationships. Of chief importance is the ability to listen to others in a way that acknowledges their own values, beliefs, and autonomy.

I see a lot of posts and comments about people having trouble with non stoics because they're aloof or cold to people. I think there is a misconception about being stoic, that you have to be emotionless. To me being stoic is simply controlling your emotions.

✅ Aloof generally describes the way someone interacts with other people (They thought the gentleman was aloof and rude), whereas stoic describes a person's response to their circ*mstances and emotions (Beneath her stoic expression, they could tell she was having a good time).

Stoicism can be epitomized by three essential beliefs: (1) that virtue is sufficient for happiness, (2) that other so-called goods should be regarded with indifference, and (3) that the world is providentially ordered by God.

If you are careless and lazy now and keep putting things off and always deferring the day after which you will attend to yourself, you will not notice that you are making no progress but you will live and die as someone quite ordinary.

The Stoics often identified the universe and God with Zeus, as the ruler and upholder, and at the same time the law, of the universe. The Stoic God is not a transcendent omniscient being standing outside nature, but rather it is immanent—the divine element is immersed in nature itself.

Much of what Ryan Holiday believes comes from the Stoic tradition and the stoics believed that the ego (pride in self) is a destructive force when it is allowed to rule a person's life. It's important to ensure that the ego stays in check, that its voice is not allowed to be dominant.

According to the stoic philosopher Massimo Pigliucci, most of us will never become moral saints, so we should probably discard the hope of ever reaching that plateau. But, we can become ethically better; and to do so, we have to acknowledge our faults and forgive ourselves for them.

Stoicism is a practical philosophy with the aim of living a meaningful life, and becoming one's best self. The Stoics believed in living a virtuous life, one with the potential to bring us personal happiness and fulfillment. And that's one of the reasons a person may choose to live after their fashion.

What makes a Stoic happy? ›

Stoicism holds that the key to a good, happy life is the cultivation of an excellent mental state, which the Stoics identified with virtue and being rational. The ideal life is one that is in harmony with Nature, of which we are all part, and an attitude of calm indifference towards external events.

“Letting go is a necessary, if sometimes heart-wrenching gateway to genuine transformation,” is how the always-zen Phil Jackson put it. The Stoics called it the “art of acquiescence”—the giving up and the assenting of whatever things are so that they can be what they are to become. Again, this is very hard.

Some people are natural born Stoics. Without ever reading the Stoic philosophers of ancient Greece and Rome, they develop an ability to avoid needless anxiety, to enjoy the world around them, and to remain optimistic in the face of setbacks. Other people clearly don't fall into this category.

Among the parallels between Stoicism and Christianity, both are monotheistic. Stoicism follows Heracl*tus and believes in one Logos; Christianity follows Jesus, and requires followers to believe in the one true God and have no other gods before him [her].

Clinging, jealousy, possessiveness have no place in Stoicism. Because there is simply no time to waste–no time to waste clinging to the illusion that we can control other people, dictate their actions, and enforce our will over them.

Stoics preach a dampening of our emotions, thus robbing us of one of the most important things that make us human. It depends of what we mean by that. If the idea is that people can go from heights of elation to depths of despair, then yes, Stoicism actively attempts to avoid such extremes.

Some common synonyms of stoic are apathetic, impassive, phlegmatic, and stolid.

Stoicism is not connected to Christianity. Although Stoicism refers to gods, it is a philosophical doctrine without religion.

One of the most famous Stoic slogans says that: Anger does us more harm than the things about which we're angry. We eat our own hearts when we give in to anger, as philosophers used to say. It's self-destructive. The consequences of our anger might harm others but we also harm ourselves.

God, Fate, and Freedom: The Stoics on Providence. The ancient Stoics are pantheists. They believe that the cosmos is identical with God. Therefore, everything in the universe such as stones, trees, animals, humans, etc.

What is a nihilist person? ›

Nihilism is the belief that all values are baseless and that nothing can be known or communicated. It is often associated with extreme pessimism and a radical skepticism that condemns existence. A true nihilist would believe in nothing, have no loyalties, and no purpose other than, perhaps, an impulse to destroy.

In Stoicism, ignorance is not reviled, it is simply corrected. Epictetus, like Aurelius, clams that the person who is hurt by immorality is the person who performs it. The Stoic is left unscathed, assuming he reacts appropriately.

Stoicism is like the “elimination” diet of thought, it offers to solve problems by shutting off the feeling part. The problem is that feeling part never shuts off fully (except for psychopaths), so stoicism can often slip into just another version of mental avoidance when trying to apply it to all of life.

The point is: The Stoics loved deeply and unashamedly, this is impossible to argue against. However, they did so in their own unique way. In contrast to the Romantic, who understands love basically as unrequited love, the Stoic approaches the emotions, love included, from within a philosophical outlook.

In many ways Modern Stoicism is similar to ancient Stoicism: Both advocate a virtue ethics in which flourishing is achieved by living like an excellent human being rather then, for example, trying to maximise happiness or follow a set of rules. Both deem virtue as necessary and sufficient for flourishing.

Stoicism, as we have said, is not the elimination of all emotion. It's the regulation of them. Effectively, as Nassim Taleb has said, it's the domestication of your urges and impulses and knee-jerk reactions.