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Home > Overleaves > The Stoic Attitude The Stoic Attitude BY PHILLIP WITTMEYER Stoics can be described as the pessimistic Attitude. It isn't that Stoics perceive everything as contemptible like the Cynic does, or that they perceive everything to be questionable like the Skeptic does. It is that there is very little that is of much importance. A Stoic finds the world bland, uninspiring and drab, perhaps even dreary — "Things are tough all over". This has the advantage that Stoics are not easily upset because they can put up with much negativity. It is as if they were insulated from it. Nor are they deceived by false hopes. On the other hand, there is the disadvantage that Stoics do not "fight the system" when it is in need of reform. They may not see real dangers to avoid. Stoics have a mood of insensitivity to what is happening around them — "Who cares?". They are psychologically "nearsighted", so to speak. They are unaffected by things that provoke others, and indifferent to things that draw others — "I'm not impressed". Because they tend to minimize what they see, it often takes the proverbial two-by-four to hit them between the eyes to get their attention. Only in severe trauma do they realize that something serious is happening. The Stoic Attitude is the complement of the Spiritualist Attitude. Both are in the Inspiration axis. Both cause the person to perceive the world in terms of qualities or values, to perceive the essence more than the action or the mental content of their experiences. Sometimes Spiritualists and Stoics have difficulty telling what happened or what was said other than to describe the mood and impression of the events or the words. Interestingly enough, a religious temperament is present in people with both Attitudes. Both think of life in terms of "destiny", but in opposite ways. The Spiritualist sees creation evolving freely in the abundance and beneficence of "Providence". The Stoic feels the creation is trapped in the deterministic rule of omnipotent "Fate". Spiritualists see God "up there" beyond nature, but Stoics see the hand of God "down here" in nature. Spiritualists look to heaven and Stoics look to earth. Spiritualists see the world as more than real. Stoics see it as less than real, a phantom. Stoics can be deadly sober. Rarely are they frivolous. Also, Stoics are certainly not "touchy" people. The counterpart of the Stoic Attitude is the Emotional Center. People in both are very mundane in their approach — they are physical rather than psychological. That is, they prefer the body to the mind. People in both have a certain moodiness about them. The difference between the two is that the Emotional Center is the feeling response of the personality to the qualities one sees, and the Stoic Attitude is one's view of the qualities of the world. The Positive Pole is +Tranquility, and people in this Pole are typically at peace with themselves and the world. They regard the world as a pleasant place, and are contented to have their small part in it. They consider most disturbances to be petty, so they overlook them as not worth getting bothered about. They have a high tolerance for irritations. In situations that would upset others, they are "cool, calm and collected". In circumstances that would perturb others, they are serene and relaxed. Few things can shake their composure. The Negative Pole is -Resignation. This is a fatalistic, gloomy, somber attitude. People in this Pole believe that events are predetermined anyway, so why fight them? If it is inevitable, so there is no use getting upset about them — "Why bother?". Such people feel overwhelmed by the "slings and arrows of outrageous fortune", so they just keep cool in the adversity. Such people are so turned off to the world that they will not try to exercise their power against it — "What's the use?". Stoics in this Pole believe in luck — bad luck. One sad thing about this is that they may blame fate rather than learn from their mistakes. Another sad thing is that because they anticipate things will get worse, they do not get upset when things do get worse — upset enough to do something about it. Yet another sad thing is that they do not get excited when things get better because they figure it will just turn bad again. In the extreme case this pessimism is spiritlessness, hopelessness and apathy. The fear that drives -Resignation is the fear of getting one's hopes up, only to have them dashed to pieces. -Resignation is therefore a hedge against disappointment. -Resignation is sometimes driven by a fear of going against the will of God. Stoics see the hand of God (or it's equivalent, whatever they call it) in everything, so they do not want to be guilty of opposing His ordained law. The way to transcend this fear is to consider and apply the Positive Pole of the Complementary Attitude, which is +Verification — seek the truth about good and evil. Attune to the higher qualities and values of life. Do not get dragged down by the misery that is in the world — things may not be good right now, but they will improve at least enough to balance out in the long run. Bring to mind the better things, be optimistic, and look beyond this "veil of tears".
Phil Wittmeyer is a longtime Michael student and scholar of the teachings.
He can be reached at:
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