Stoic Eros
“Stoic Eros” by Simon Shogry, published by Cambridge University Press on February 15, 2024, is a concise exploration of the Stoic philosophy regarding erotic love. This 76-page work delves into the distinction between two forms of eros as understood by the Stoics, highlighting how a defective rational judgment can lead to a negative passion, while a positive form of erotic love is cultivated by the Sage through knowledge and virtue.
Readers will find a thorough examination of the Stoics’ theoretical commitments across ethics, epistemology, aesthetics, and psychology, which underpin their dual perspective on eros. The text also engages with the influence of Plato’s “Symposium” and presents connections to Socratic moral psychology. The Element concludes with a thoughtful assessment of the Stoic erotic ideal in relation to contemporary views on love, emphasizing its non-egoistic and particularized nature.
Official synopsis Publisher
The Stoics distinguish two forms of eros. In vicious agents eros is indeed a passion and thus born out of a defective rational judgment about what is needed for happiness. But there is also a positive form of erotic love, practiced by the Sage on the basis of knowledge, which aims to reproduce his virtuous condition in others. In this Element, the author shows how the Stoics’ wider theoretical commitments in ethics, epistemology, aesthetics, and psychology support their duplex account of eros. They also consider the influence of Plato’s Symposium on the Stoic account, arguing for hitherto unrecognized links with Socratic moral psychology. The Element concludes with an assessment of how the Stoic erotic ideal fares in relation to our intuitions about the non-egoistic and particularized nature of love.
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