Western Civilization I / Unit 5 WC1 0419 short lesson, about 20 seconds
Cynics and Stoics: Mock It or Accept It
Captions available
The idea
Cynics like Diogenes held convention corrupting and nature the source of virtue. Stoics, an offshoot, taught fate and reason: fill your social role, serve in politics as part of a divine plan, bear trials without emotion.
In practice
All three schools accommodated the status quo: avoid, mock, or support.
Where people slip
None asked Socrates' question about the good city. Greek thought spread without its politics.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
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