Re-reading a newspaper article that I wrote at the start of the pandemic about how Marcus Aurelius used Stoicism, in the Meditations, to cope with the Antonine Plague. It struck me that, in part at least, the Meditations can be seen as Marcus’ notes to himself on coping with the psychological and moral challenges of the plague — or, if you like, as a manual for coping Stoically during a pandemic.

Highlights

How Marcus used Stoicism to cope with his own pandemic
The Dichotomy of Control
Modelling virtue
Contemplating our own mortality

Original article titled Stoicism in a Time of Pandemic, from The Guardian newspaper, April 2020.

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