Stockdale on stoicism pdf

Having a bad day, rethink it as you read about admiral stockdale s account as a pow. His bravery and strength as a pow rightly earned him the congressional medal of honor, which was awarded after his release. Pdf how managers use the stockdale paradox to balance. From epictetus and marcus aurelius to james stockdale. Most of our knowledge of it comes from three roman stoics. Pdf how managers use the stockdale paradox to balance the. He eventually rose to the rank of vice admiral in the us navy and even had a somewhat illfated run as a. But what we can do, what the stoic practice is meant to help us do, is to prevail over what happened, and decide what comes next. At first, some historical cases are investigated, from a roman emperor marcus aurelius to. Mar 18, 2010 stockdale was the highestranking naval officer held as a prisoner in north vietnam.

Excerpt about james stockdale from the philosophy of. In preparation, i read in love and war, the book stockdale and his wife had written in alternating. Remarks, stockdale to pilots, 1965 us naval war college digital. When the war ended, he was released and would lecture on stoic philosophy and its value to the military. This article employs ciceros assault on stoic philosophy in pro. The chapter is devoted to the analysis of ancient stoic philosophy as a source of resil ience for. Stockdale lecture in ethics and leadership moral saints and moral heroes louis p. Published in october 18th 2016 the book become immediate popular and critical acclaim in philosophy, non fiction books. Stockdale, then a senior navy pilot shot down over vietnam, muttered. The result will actually be our first two publications in this series, which we are calling stockdale on stoicism i and stockdale on stoicism ii. Reintroduction to stoicism thurs aug 21 course intro no reading tues aug 26 what is stoicism thurs aug 28 stoicism and leadership senecas letters stockdale the role of the pressure cooker bb lxxxviii only pp. Stoicism enables boldness in facing difficult situations and devotion for the wellbeing of the country, etc. For those ready for a serious intellectual challenge, nancy shermans book is the next step. Born of a slave woman and a slave himself for some years, epictetus was banished from rome by the emperor domitian but gathered around him a flourishing school.

Stockdale and a common themethe influence of stoic philosophy on admiral stockdales life and career. Stephens does a good job outlining the basic relationship between stockdale and stoicism. Stockdale, stoicism and the art of living mountain tactical. Stockdale published confessions of a philosophical fighter pilot and there i learned about epictetus, stoicism, and how this philosophy helped adm. Like epictetus, stockdale was one of those rare stoic philosophers who have proven, from their own painful experience, that stoicism works under the most difficult circumstances. The stoic tradition stoicism is a living philosophy. Read this for a short introduction to stoicism as well as a rare window into the life of an american hero. Epictetuss background, see stockdale on stoicism i. What may have appeared at first to be the theoretical musings of a long dead man, later became the source of stockdale s survival. He believes that an ethically based stoicism can do much for soldiers.

Let us discuss the case study of james stockdale s historic cavalry and endurance to understand whether the stoic teachings of. Born of a slave woman and a slave himself for some years, epictetus was banished from rome by the emperor domitian but. The stoic real estate investor ancient wisdom for the. The stockdale paradox and survival psychology contain wisdom for how. Pojman in 1941 father maximilian kolbe, a polish friar from warsaw was arrested for publishing antinazi pamphlets and sentenced to auschwitz. The chapter is devoted to the analysis of ancient stoic philosophy as a source of resilience for soldiers. Courage under fire demonstrates the profound impact that stoicism can have on an individuals subjective experience and stockdale credits the work of epictetus as being central to his survival. One of his papers on stoicism is available here pdf. What ancient philosophers teach us about how to live is published by allen lane rrp. Nov 28, 2018 this short book, the enchiridion by epictetus, is a handbook of stoic philosophy written over 2,000 years ago.

What a philosophical fighter pilot can teach us about. Stockdale, stoicism and the art of living mountain. The world of epictetus by james stockdale foreword by os guinness the trinity. Testing epictetuss doctrines in a laboratory of human behavior hoover essays by vice admiral james stockdale.

And while stoicism may colloquially refer to repressing emotion. Shortly after his deployment in the vietnam war, stockdale s plane was. His teachings were written down and published by his pupil arrian in. In episode one, stockdale begins his discussion about how stoicism helped him survive as a prisoner of war for seven and onehalf years.

Aug, 2016 at a rough estimate, less than 1% of the many ancient writings on stoicism actually survive today. He lived half a century before epictetus and more than a century before marcus. Mar 08, 2015 admiral james stockdale epictetus in the last few days i have written about each of the three major stoic philosophers. Stockdaleand a common themethe influence of stoic philosophy on admiral. One of my students had written his paper on stockdale, who happened to be a senior research fellow studying the stoic philosophers at the hoover institution right across the street from my office, and stockdale invited the two of us for lunch. About 23s into the book, he brings up what he calls the stockdale paradox. While completing his masters at stanford, stockdale was introduced to epictetus teachings by his mentor and philosophy professor, dr.

Jul 31, 2017 james stockdale is amazing model for modern stoics, especially those who are in public service such representative government, military, law enforcement, etc. What the stockdale paradox tells us about crisis leadership hbs. You can understand, then, my anticipation at the prospect of spending part of an afternoon with stockdale. This book can be heavy at times and if you are looking for a lighter introduction to how stoicism can help soldiers you can look into stockdale s book earlier on the list. Stockdale had never heard about stoicism but eventually devoured the book, committing most of the lessons to memory. Stockdales selfconscious stoicism was crucial to his survival through that gruelling ordeal, but sherman questions the wisdom of military personnel and humans. Feb 01, 2020 after the war, stockdale lectured on stoicism and coping with torture and imprisonment. The stoic warrior s being a serious and doubtless disgusted young man, he gravitated to the highminded public lectures of the stoic teachers who were then the philosophers of rome. Epictetus eventually became apprenticed to the very best. Admiral james stockdale, an american prisoner of war in vietnam, in his autobiography courage under fire credits the teachings of epictetus. In 1965, as captain james stockdale future medal of honor recipient parachuted from his shotup plane over vietnam into what would ultimately be a half decade of torture and imprisonment, whose name was on his lips.

We have no complete texts by the greek founders of stoicism, only fragments. Stockdale also blames the modern man for blindly opposing stoicism, without being aware of its positive qualities. Yet seneca was the first of the three great stoic philosophers whose writings are still extant. The stockdale chair of professional military ethics at the naval. James bond stockdale december 23, 1923 july 5, 2005 was a united states navy vice. May 26, 2020 stockdale won the medal of honor for his leadership and conduct as the senior naval officer at the hanoi hilton during the vietnam war. He had led aerial attacks from the carrier uss ticonderoga cva14 during the 1964 gulf of tonkin incident. He credits epictetus as the key to his survival for sevenandahalf years of his life in military prison. As stockdale was leaving stanford, rhinelander gave him a copy of the work on roman stoicism by the freed slavephilosopher epictetus, which stock. This is the introduction i give to anyone who wants more information on stoicism. The stoics claim that their philosophy has practical applications, and the story of james stockdale attests to that power. How managers use the stockdale paradox to balance the now and the next.

There is a grain of truth in the popular understanding of stoicism and sherman spends a good part of the book wrestling with it. In them, we find the wisdom to help us overcome adversity, find serenity and live well. Stoic ideas provide an educational framework for prevailing amidst unreasonable odds. It shares with the first occa sional paper a common authorvice admiral james b. Sign up today for the daily stoic s email and get our popular free 7day course on stoicism. The popular misconception of stoicism grows out of the orthodox stoic ideal of the sage, an ideal that stockdale strove to approximate and other military personnel have tried emulating to varying degrees. It is first and foremost a philosophy to live by, a. In stoic philosophy, stockdale discovered what it meant to be invincible. Stockdale had read the stoic epictetus years earlier and during his imprisonment he found stoic philosophy invaluable as a way of coping with the extreme situation he faced. James bond stockdale december 23, 1923 july 5, 2005 was a united states navy vice admiral and aviator awarded the medal of honor in the vietnam war, during which he was a prisoner of war for over seven years stockdale was the most senior naval officer.

Moreover, vadm stockdale s story serves as a tremendous example of sacrifice, service, and victory against all. What that means is that stoic philosophy is more than just great thoughts organized into a complete and coherent vision of reality. As an aside, for those interested in stockdale, here are two pdf files of some of his work which are available without cost to the reader. James stockdale, who has described how remembered maxims from.

Hanoi hilton, stockdale made stoicism the backbone of his leadership style. They are speaking of it in comparison to the devastating agony of shame t h e y. In the final days of his study at stanford university, james stockdale was presented with a text called the enchiridion, written by the stoic philosopher epictetus. The best part about stoicism is that you can go to the primary texts, read them and feel like they were written yesterday, not 2000 years ago. What the enchiridion lacks in size it makes up for in profundity and clarity of the message. There he was beaten, kicked by shiny leather boots, and whipped by his prison guards. The stockdale paradox and its connection to stoicism the. Stockdale s own writing on it provide more context. A quick must read if you want an example of a modern stoic sage. He was born a slave at hierapolis, phrygia present day pamukkale, turkey and lived in rome until his banishment, when he went to nicopolis in northwestern greece for the rest of his life. Stockdale, a senior navy pilot shot down over vietnam, became a prisoner of war during the vietnam war. Epictetus and james stockdale stoicism in action youtube.

Marine corps amphibious warfare school in quantico, virginia on april 18, 1995. Aug 25, 2019 bill winter and donavon riley read and discuss james b. Feb 03, 2015 in 1965, james stockdale s a4e skyhawk was shot down over vietnam stockdale spent more than seven years in a vietnamese prison, and he wrote that stoicism saved his lifewhile some of his fellow pows tormented themselves with false hopes of an early release, stockdale s stoic practice helped him confront the grim reality of his. Vadm stockdale s extraordinary circumstances show just how far these ideas can take us. On september 9, 1965, i flew at 500 knots right into a flak trap, at treetop level, in a little a4 airplane the cockpit walls not even three feet apart which i couldnt steer after it. Sep 10, 2010 if the stoic philosopher epictetus were alive in modern times, the first person he would want to be introduced to would probably be stockdale himself. A stoic and socratic guide to life print isbn 0199245568, 2002 contents preface ix citations and abbreviations xii anthology of excerpts xiii introduction 1 1. Epictetus was a freed slave and stoic sage in ancient rome. You can pick up seneca, marcus aurelius or epictetus and find the writing fresh as ever. The philosophy admiral stockdale had studied, as a grad student at stanford, was an obscure school known as stoicism, an ancient greek and roman philosophy of discipline, action, and resistance. Resilience marcus aurelius epictetus seneca james stockdale victor.

Jan 04, 2010 the piece refers to some works by vice presidential candidate with ross perot admiral stockdale on stoicism. Stoics belittle physical harm, but this is not braggadocio. James bond stockdale december 23, 1923 july 5, 2005 was a united states navy vice admiral and aviator awarded the medal of honor in the vietnam war, during which he was a prisoner of war for over seven years. Epictetus and admiral james stockdale reason and meaning. By looking at examples and text, my ultimate focus will be on how and whether a version of ancient stoicism can defend against a fundamental vulnerability that. Moreover, vadm stockdale s story serves as a tremendous example of sacrifice, service, and victory against all odds. I didnt know until i read this that stockdale of all people wrote on philosophy but apparently so. Purchase your copy of lives of the stoics by ryan holiday and stephen hanselman here.

Stockdale was the most senior naval officer held captive in hanoi, north vietnam. They contain timeless truths and wisdom for any era. This months quadrant and stoicism sick of politics. The first, this publication, is a slightly edited version of two lectures admiral stockdale gave to the students at the u. This chapter provides an overview of the philosophy of stoicism and its influence in the military. Sep 22, 2020 in the final days of his study at stanford university, james stockdale was presented with a text called the enchiridion, written by the stoic philosopher epictetus. Stockdale for several days, including one major eventmoral courage. James stockdale us pow in vietnam is the best example of a modern man living a stoic life with optimism. A key part of admiral stockdale s article centers on the thought of epictetus, the influential and appealing stoic teacher who lived c. Feb 15, 2020 stockdale stayed in solitary for 4 years. Pdfadobe acrobat as stockdale was leaving stanford, rhinelander gave him a copy of the work on roman stoicism by the freed slavephilosopher epictetus, which stock. Admiral james stockdale epictetus in the last few days i have written about each of the three major stoic philosophers.