Caleb's Life Philosophy (Episode 226)

What’s the core of Stoicism worth keeping? And where does it fall short?

Caleb shares his life philosophy in this companion to Michael’s earlier episode. He builds the case for Stoicism from the ground up, then turns it on itself. If happiness has to be up to us, what does that say about the rest of life? And what do you do with the parts of human experience that don’t fit neatly into propositions?

The thread running through it all is humility. Stoicism gives you a strong frame. It also asks you to admit what you don’t know.

(00:00) Introduction

(03:30) The Core Argument: Happiness Must Be Up to Us

(13:30) Character and How We Think

(15:30) Human Nature: Rationality and Sociability

(25:30) Objection One: Life Is Tragic

(31:30) Objection Two: Reason Doesn’t Capture Everything

(41:00) Objection Three: Non-Cognitive Knowledge

(48:50) Summing Up

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Thanks to Michael Levy for graciously letting us use his music in the conversations:

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