Discourses · Character

Zeno

Founder of Stoicism, cited as a philosophical authority.

minor

First appearance: i of the things which are in our power and not in our power

Zeno's tie to Antigonus is one of the pressures that moves Discourses—worth meeting in the text, not only on a cast list.

Mentioned alongside Chrysippus and Cleanthes as a Stoic philosopher who affirms the value of logic.

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With Antigonus (professional): Antigonus, a king, seeks Zeno's philosophical counsel, creating a patron-philosopher dynamic. In That the Logical Art Is Necessary: Mentioned alongside Chrysippus and Cleanthes as a Stoic…

With Antigonus (professional): Antigonus, a king, seeks Zeno's philosophical counsel, creating a patron-philosopher dynamic.

In That the Logical Art Is Necessary: Mentioned alongside Chrysippus and Cleanthes as a Stoic philosopher who affirms the value of logic.

Later, in About Reason, How It Contemplates Itself: Cited as a source for the brief statement of the chief philosophical doctrine: man's end is to follow the gods and the nature of good is the proper use of appearances.

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See Zeno in i of the things which are in our power and not in our power

Character Web

7 connections

A slice of how Zeno sits in the book — open the reader for the full interactive map.

Relationship types

Professional
Other

Character groups

Philosopher and patron
Philosophers and rulers

+2 more in the full Character Web

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Narrative arc

Story tension across the book — this chapter sits in Exposition.

Setup
Escalation
Breaking point
Aftermath
Closing

This passage is the dramatic climax because it delivers the emotional and psychological peak of Epictetus’s ar…

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Relationships

Antigonus
professional · positive
Antigonus, a king, seeks Zeno's philosophical counsel, creating a patron-philosopher… How this plays out →

Relationship notes

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See Zeno in i of the things which are in our power and not in our power

In the story

Zeno appears across 6 companion beats. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.

That the Logical Art Is Necessary
Mentioned alongside Chrysippus and Cleanthes as a Stoic philosopher who affirms the value of logic.
About Reason, How It Contemplates Itself
Cited as a source for the brief statement of the chief philosophical doctrine: man's end is to follow the gods and the nature of good is the proper use of appearances.
XIII: On Anxiety (Solicitude)
Example of a philosopher who was not anxious when meeting Antigonus because he valued nothing that Antigonus could control.
To Those Who Read and Discuss for the Sake of Ostentation
Mentioned alongside Socrates and Cleanthes as an example of a philosopher who did not engage in ostentatious display.
VIII: Against Those Who Hastily Rush Into the Use of the Philosophic Dress
Referenced for his definition of the philosopher's theorems: to know the elements of reason and how they are fitted to one another.
To a Person Who Had Been Changed to a Character of Shamelessness
Mentioned alongside Chrysippus as a philosopher whose teachings the person has abandoned.

Chapter companion notes

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See Zeno in i of the things which are in our power and not in our power

See Zeno in That the Logical Art Is Necessary