- I tend to roll my eyes a little bit whenever stoicism is mentioned. Internal checks and balances for emperors/nobles/incredibly wealthy and powerful men don't really apply for the average guy. Depending on circumstances you might be in need of the exact opposite advice lest you jump out of the office window Saturday at 9 PM.
- without dopamine we wouldn't do anything. So arguing against pleasure in general can't really make any sense.
- observing different people I think by nature and/or nurture some have a healthy/moderated relationship with pleasure and some become addicted with all the features: over indulgence, build of tolerance, withdrawal, etc. I could never understand for example how some people can smoke a few occasions per year. I went from 0 to 1 pack instantly. And I noticed I mostly socialize with addictive types too.
- they didn't have video games, social media and Netflix when they made the distinction between pleasures of the body and of the mind. Hard to argue nowadays one is clearly superior to the other.
On Stoicism: I suggest to avoid poor remixes (e.g. Ryan Holiday) and pop-Stoicim videos like the plague and seriously engage with the originals for at least two years (yes). See my other comment here[1] for suggestions on robust English translations.
Also, Marcus Aurelius is overtaken by macho guys and business people. Why not? It's nice to associate yourself with a Roman emperor (hence the book titles like "How to think like a Roman emperor" -- avoid this). How about associating with a crippled ex Greek slave, Epictetus, who had a profound influence on Marcus? Doesn't have the same ring to it.
Further, many people don't know that Marcus was a deeply melancholic man. I don't recommend at all to start with his work. I'm saying this after I've read a few translations and a scholarly treatise on his work. (If you wonder where to start, might want to have a gander at this[1].)
And here's the cherry on top from science: the celebrated neuroscientist Robert Sapolsky in Behave (and Joshua Greene in Moral Tribes) talk about experimental evidence on how "virtue ethics (Stoicism is an example of it) is on to something", in a cheerful sense.
- I tend to roll my eyes a little bit whenever stoicism is mentioned. Internal checks and balances for emperors/nobles/incredibly wealthy and powerful men don't really apply for the average guy. Depending on circumstances you might be in need of the exact opposite advice lest you jump out of the office window Saturday at 9 PM.
- without dopamine we wouldn't do anything. So arguing against pleasure in general can't really make any sense.
- observing different people I think by nature and/or nurture some have a healthy/moderated relationship with pleasure and some become addicted with all the features: over indulgence, build of tolerance, withdrawal, etc. I could never understand for example how some people can smoke a few occasions per year. I went from 0 to 1 pack instantly. And I noticed I mostly socialize with addictive types too.
- they didn't have video games, social media and Netflix when they made the distinction between pleasures of the body and of the mind. Hard to argue nowadays one is clearly superior to the other.