This fall, the Maritain Institute is pleased once again to sponsor a discussion group, the “Cercle d'études.” This title is meant to evoke a long-running discussion group hosted by the great 20th century Catholic thinkers Jacques and Raissa Maritain, devoted to open-ended explorations of vital philosophical, theological, and social issues. In that spirit, this discussion group will offer students a weekly opportunity to engage one another and faculty speakers on specific questions of deep interest.
Register for the course (PHIL 33799) or just drop by to join the discussion! Snacks provided. Please reach out to Beth Muench with any questions: espesia@nd.edu.
September 16: Professor Gretchen Reydams-Schils
“Is Stoicism about a stiff upper lip?”
Abstract: This discussion will start from a passage from the Meditations by the Stoic Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius (121–180 AD), which he probably wrote for himself or a very small circle, at most. In this passage (2.17), he appears to scorn the human lifespan, the body, the soul, fortune, fame, in sum, pretty much everything a human being ordinarily cares about. We may well wonder, then, whether the turn to philosophy, as the Stoics perceive it, asks of its adepts that they give up too much. In my presentation I will develop some lines of thinking to show that this is not actually the case and that this ‘negative’ attitude is only an opening move on Marcus Aurelius’ part, not his fully considered stance.
