John, Author at Stoic Athenaeum

Stoicism, Comics And Horror: Donald Robertson On Writing The Life Of Marcus Aurelius

The philosophy of Stoicism has inspired the works of countless people and continues to be a driving force for many business leaders and authors today. The same can be said for psychotherapist Donald Robertson, who’s made a career out of applying the principles of Stoicism to everyday life through publications such as How To Think Like A Roman Emperor.

Robertson’s latest project is a graphic novel focused on the life of Marcus Aurelius and Stoic Athenaeum caught up with him on the process behind writing the comic. In this interview, we explore the challenges of writing a graphic novel steeped in ancient history, capturing the voice of Marcus Aurelius and how Stoicism can be interpreted through the lens of comics.

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Old Norse Philosophy: Untangling The Strings Of Seidr

Of the many fascinating things about philosophy, different cultures interpret it differently and the vikings were no different. Old Norse philosophy has many similarities to the practices of ancient Greek and Roman cultures in the sense that the philosophy emphasised happiness through living a life of virtue.

Characteristics of wisdom, self-control, bravery and personal independence were all valued within Old Norse philosophy. But as Norse Mythology Org points out, the vikings didn’t express their worldview through the logos, i.e. universal concepts of rationality and theoretical exposition.

Rather, Old Norse philosophy had its foundations built on mythos, a story-based worldview of gods, heroes, myths and legends. This distinction is important when seeking to understand how the vikings approached life and I’ll be delving into different concepts across the culture and bringing them into a philosophical perspective.

The first concept is seidr.

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Life Is In The Transitions: Mastering Change At Any Age Review: Turning Self-Transformation Into Your Superpower

Transitions are a natural part of life. They are transformative moments that make us reevaluate the path we’re walking and move in a new direction for better or worse. Transitions connect people from across the world, young, old, poor, rich, and 2020 has been a year where many of us have had to adapt to changing circumstances.

Bruce Feiler’s Life Is In The Transitions: Mastering Change At Any Age is a timely book that delves into the process of reframing your life story and coming out stronger. From sharing the personal tales of 225 people from across America, to explaining transition superpowers and kryptonite, this book reveals some great insight into personal development.

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The Stoic Guide To A Happy Live Review: Reinterpreting Epictetus And The Introduction Of Stoicism 2.0

In the arena of philosophy, practices are always evolving and being updated. Stoicism is no different and through the centuries, the original ideas laid out by Zeno of Citium were adapted and changed by later Stoics like Cleanthes, Chrysippus and Epictetus.

Epictetus in particular is of note for his focus on the dichotomy of control and his teachings in The Enchiridion have influenced countless generations.

A modern Stoic who’s been influenced by Epitectetus is Massimo Pigliucci and in his book The Stoic Guide To A Happy Life: 53 Brief Lessons For Living, Pigliucci reinterprets The Enchiridion for a modern audience and introduces his own take on how Stoicism should be updated.

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