Epictetus · c. 50 – c. 135 CE
Discourses 1.24 ¶3 — Epictetus
From “How We Should Struggle with Circumstances”
Translation by George Long (1877)
Epictetus, Discourses 1.24 ¶3
“What then shall I do?” What do you do when you leave a ship? Do you take away the helm or the oars? What then do you take away? You take what is your own, your bottle and your wallet; and now if you think of what is your own, you will never claim what belongs to others. The emperor (Domitian) says, “Lay aside your laticlave.” See, I put on the angusticlave. “Lay aside this also.” See, I have only my toga. “Lay aside your toga.” See, I am now naked. “But you still raise my envy.” Take then all my poor body; when, at a man’s command, I can throw away my poor body, do I still fear him?
Cite this passage
Epictetus, Discourses 1.24 ¶3, tr. George Long (1877)
https://whatwouldstoicsdo.com/passage/discourses/1.24.3
Epictetus, Discourses (as recorded by Arrian), tr. George Long (1877). Text: Standard Ebooks (CC0). Sources and licences
In plain English
AI-written notesWhen you leave a ship you take what is your own and nothing else. If a ruler strips you of your rank, your clothes and finally everything, you still have only lost what was never yours, so a person who is ready to lose even the body has nothing left to fear from him.
Older wording
- “laticlave”
- — a tunic with a broad purple stripe, the mark of a senator
- “angusticlave”
- — a tunic with a narrow stripe, worn by the lower rank of knights
- “toga”
- — the formal outer garment of a Roman citizen
Themes and situations
- Simplicity and frugality
- Fear and anxiety
- Courage
- Freedom
- What is in our control
- Losing a job
- Losing money
- A difficult boss
Quote cards
The opening line of this passage as an image, with its citation — for sharing or keeping.