Epictetus · c. 50 – c. 135 CE
Enchiridion 45 — Epictetus
Translation by George Long (1877)
Epictetus, Enchiridion 45
Does a man bathe quickly (early)? do not say that he bathes badly, but that he bathes quickly. Does a man drink much wine? do not say that he does this badly, but say that he drinks much. For before you shall have determined the opinion, how do you know whether he is acting wrong? Thus it will not happen to you to comprehend some appearances which are capable of being comprehended, but to assent to others.
Cite this passage
Epictetus, Enchiridion 45, tr. George Long (1877)
https://whatwouldstoicsdo.com/passage/enchiridion/45
Epictetus, Enchiridion and Fragments, tr. George Long (1877). Text: Standard Ebooks (CC0). Sources and licences
In plain English
AI-written notesDescribe what people do without judging it, saying he bathes quickly or drinks a lot instead of that he does it badly, since you cannot know whether it is wrong until you know the reasoning behind it. This way you avoid agreeing to impressions you have not checked.
Older wording
- “assent”
- — agree that something is true
- “appearances”
- — the impressions your mind receives of things
Themes and situations
- Judgements and impressions
- Justice and fairness
- Speech and silence
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