Stoicism and Social Responsibility: Being a Citizen of the World

“Suppose any man shall despise me. Let him look to that himself. But I will look to this, that I be not discovered doing or saying anything deserving of contempt. Shall any man hate me? Let him look to it. But I will be mild and benevolent towards every man, and ready to show even him his mistake, not reproachfully, nor yet as making a display of my endurance, but nobly and honestly, like the great Phocion, unless indeed he only assumed it. For the interior parts ought to be such, and a man ought to be seen by the gods neither dissatisfied with anything nor complaining. For what evil is it to thee, if thou art now doing what is agreeable to thy own nature, and art satisfied with that which at this moment is suitable to the nature of the universe, since thou art a human being placed at thy post in order that what is for the common advantage may be done in some way?” (Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, XI)

Whether in days of old or in present day, the crucial question arises of how to live in accord with others. It never ceases to arise because it is always relevant. Human coexistence is, to put it mildly, complicated. When the winds of change seem to blow in a direction of greater foreboding, chaos, and turmoil, the answer to this question of human accordance becomes even more complicated. We must return to the fundamental principles that lay the foundation for individual virtue and peace. In these tenets we find a way of life that allows for the flourishing not only of the individual, but of the community.