Epicurus and epictetus Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Epicurus and epictetus - Essay Example Essentially, these great scholars of philosophy had different consolation on the reasons for valuing and giving meaning to life (Pojman 530). Therefore, this essay will delve on two Greek philosophers, Epictetus and Epicurus, to try to understand their ideologies regarding the importance of living life without having to worry about the occurrence of death. 2. Epicurus According to ancient philosophy, Epicurus was an ancient philosopher that lived between two hundred and seventy one and three hundred and forty one B.C. He founded his school of philosophy in Athens where he spent most of his life. Epicurus was a philosopher who related the aspect of pleasure with good and the aspect of bad with pain concerning living. This concept became Hedonism, a Greek word meaning pleasure. For Epicurus, being sensuous and exalting life did not quantify for Epicureanism to form an opinion on the views of living. However, Epicurus was of the belief that a pleasurable life came from having calm emoti ons through the appreciation of honest but beautiful pleasantries of life. These pleasures include the good company of friends, a healthy diet, morally upright behavior, and good personal health. Epicurus insisted that people were not to worry about death, but only had to concern themselves with pleasure and pain (Pojman 531). Therefore, Epicurus believed that death was not a feeling hence advising people not to be fearful of death. Ideally, this Epicurus was an ardent believer in the doctrines of philosophy because to him philosophy was a constant factor in the life of any individual. Further, Epicurus felt that people needed to focus on the aspects of life that made them happy as part of living a fulfilled life. However, this Epicurus had a queer belief in matters related to God and other gods, but he acknowledged their existence. In essence, Epicurus believed that these higher deities received much accreditation for what they truly were not. For him, ill fate befell those that li ved wicked lives and blessings followed those that did well hence questioning the credibility of gods being the source of either blessings or curses. 2.2 Epicurus and his argument on death Arguably, Epicurus advised people to believe that death was nothing to them because it was a way of depriving human beings off sensation. In this regard, the understanding of death as nothing of concern influenced living life enjoyably because one lived without needing to be immortal. According to his philosophy, Epicurus encouraged people not to live in anticipation of the pain that would come together with death because this feeling would make them cower towards living. Epicurus pointed out that death did not form a part of people while they were still living but became a part of them once they seized existing. This meant that death was not a concern for the living because they did not believe in the existence of death while the dead could not associate with the same as they no longer existed. I n addition, Epicurus believed that a wise person needed not fear life nor death because life did not offend him neither did death appear evil. On the other hand, Epicurus punctured the belief that the young needed advice on how to live fulfilling lives while the aged needed advice on how to approach their sunset. Arguably, Epicurus reiterated that everyone had a deep desire to continue to live irrespective of his or her age because the