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What Would Stoics Do

Cicero (on the Stoics) · 106–43 BCE

On Duties 3.105 — Cicero (on the Stoics)

Translation by Walter Miller (1913)

Cicero (on the Stoics), On Duties 3.105

"But," objection was further made, "even if Jupiter had been angry, he could not have inflicted greater injury upon Regulus than Regulus brought upon himself." Quite true, if there is no evil except pain. But philosophers of the highest authority assure us that pain is not only not the supreme evil but no evil at all. And pray do not disparage Regulus, as no unimportant witness—nay, I am rather inclined to think he was the very best witness—to the truth of their doctrine. For what more competent witness do we ask for than one of the foremost citizens of Rome, who voluntarily faced torture for the sake of being true to his moral duty? Again, they say, "Of evils choose the least"—that is, shall one "choose moral wrong rather than misfortune," or is there any evil greater than moral wrong? For if physical deformity excites a certain amount of aversion, how offensive ought the deformity and hideousness of a demoralized soul to seem!
— Cicero (on the Stoics), On Duties 3.105 · tr. Walter Miller (1913)Read in context →

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Cicero (on the Stoics), On Duties 3.105, tr. Walter Miller (1913)

https://whatwouldstoicsdo.com/passage/on-duties/3.105

Cicero, On Duties (De Officiis), tr. Walter Miller (Loeb, 1913). Text: Perseus Digital Library (CC BY-SA 4.0). Sources and licences

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In plain English

AI-written notes

If pain is not the worst evil, or even an evil at all, then enduring torture to stay true to your duty cannot be a greater harm than doing wrong, and Regulus stands as the best witness to that doctrine. A twisted, corrupted character is far more repulsive than any bodily deformity, so wrongdoing is the real evil to avoid.

Older wording

“demoralized soul”
— a morally corrupted character
“disparage”
— belittle

Themes and situations

  • Pleasure and pain
  • Virtue and character
  • Courage
  • Resilience and endurance
  • Illness or diagnosis
  • An ethical dilemma

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Cicero (on the Stoics), On Duties 3.105, tr. Walter Miller (1913)