What would a Stoic theory of pedagogy look like? (book review)

We don’t think of the Stoics as pedagogical theorists. And yet, through their writings, many advice, reflections and observations are scattered here and there. By compiling this material, it is then possible to develop a Stoic theory of education. This is what Georges Pire did in Stoïcisme et pédagogie (Stoicism and Pedagogy).

To carry out his study, the author uses the division between early Stoa (about -320 to -150), themiddle Stoa (about -129 to -110), and late or imperial Stoa(about 41 to 176). It targets key figures for each period: Zeno, Cleanthe and Chrysippus for Early Stoa; Panaetius and Posidonius for Middle Stoa; Seneca, Epictetus and Marcus Aurelius for late Stoa. Education and pedagogy are considered in a broad sense and refer to everything that contributes to the philosophical evolution of the human being, i.e. to his progression towards wisdom and happiness.

The pedagogy of the early Stoics

To study the early Stoics, Georges Pire necessarily relies on fragments, reported statements and even logical intuitions. He thus regrets that Zeno’s treatise on Greek education has been lost. According to the sources, the founder of Stoicism defended an education of substance and not of form, where the disciple had to learn to think well, to live well and to feel…