Discourses

About Epictetus: Little is known for certain about Epictetus' life.

He was born in the second half of the first century AD, probably in Asia Minor; he was a slave for some of his life; he studied philosophy in Rome, and worked at the imperial court, at the end of the century; he subsequently lived in Epirus, the northwestern part of Greece.

About this work: The Discourses are a key source for ancient Stoicism, one of the richest and most influential schools of thought in Western philosophy.

They not only represent the Stoicism of Epictetus' own time, but also reflect the teachings of such early Stoics as Zeno and Chrysippus, whose writings are largely lost.

The first of the four books of the Discourses is philosophically the richest: it focuses primarily on ethics and moral psychology, but also touches on issues of logic, epistemology, science, and rhetoric.

Other notable schools of ancient thought, including Epicureanism, the Sceptics, and the Cynics, are discussed.

About this edition: Robert Dobbin presents a new translation into clear modern English of this important work, together with the first commentary on the work since the eighteenth century. Each of the thirty discourses that make up Book 1 is introduced and summarized; then the arguments are examined in detail.

The general introduction gives background information about Epictetus' life, the intellectual context of the work, the style of the discourses, and the history of the text.

A bibliography surveys the literature. The volume serves as a guide to Epictetus' thought as a whole.

About CLAP: This series is designed to encourage philosophers and students of philosophy to explore the fertile terrain of later ancient philosophy.

The texts will range in date from the first century BC to the fifth century AD, and they will cover all the parts and all the schools of philosophy.

Each volume contains a substantial introduction, an English translation, and a critical commentary on the philosophical claims and arguments of the text.

The translations aim primarily at accuracy and fidelity, but also at readability; they are accompanied by notes on textual problems that affect the philosophical interpretation.

No knowledge of Greek or Latin is assumed.