Others as matter of indifference in Marcus Aurelius' meditations

Edita Wolf (1, 2)

1 Faculty of Arts [Prague]
2 CEFRES - Centre Français de Recherche en Sciences Sociales

In Meditations, others are treated in a double way, as being closest to us and as matter of indifference. The present article offers an interpretation, based on chapter V, 20, where the two ways are seen in different perspectives , the perspective of the whole and the perspective of a part. The perspective of the whole allows one to see the interconnectedness of individuals by reason; it is also linked to the imagery of the view from above which enables one to understand oneself as equal to any other, whereas the perspective of a part helps one to assume the attitude of indifference towards the other and thus to act properly.

Mots clés: Marcus Aurelius; Stoicism; Others; Indifference

Domaines: Etudes classiques

Edita Wolf. Others as matter of indifference in Marcus Aurelius' meditations. Acta Universitatis Carolinae. Philologica: Graecolatina Pragensia, 2016, 2, pp.13-23. ⟨10.14712/24646830.2016.1⟩. ⟨halshs-01559067⟩