Did The Stoics Feel Fear?

The Stoics Weren't As Fearless As You Think..

February 23, 2024


I know that the Stoic ideal you’ve created in your mind revolves around a man who doesn’t feel fear and rushes into the scene to help without second thoughts.

I wish that were correct…

But it isn’t.

What is fear?

An emotion; an interpretation of a situation in which something might happen that will negatively affect you.

Since it’s an emotion, can you actually get rid of it?

No—it will be forever ingrained in you.

So even brave men feel fear? 

Yes.

But then, what’s the exact definition of a brave man?

To understand this, here’s a great short story that the Roman grammatician Aulus Gellius once wrote explaining exactly how a Stoic handles fear:

Gellius was embarked on a ship with Greece as the final destination. With him, there was a Stoic philosopher—probably Athenodorus. When a severe storm broke out putting the whole ship in danger, everyone went crazy. Gellius was baffled to see that the Stoic was also frozen from fear, but compared to others who were running around and shouting, he did not make a single sound. When the storm passed, Gellius approached the Stoic. “I thought the Stoics did not experience fear,” he told him.

“That’s not true,” the Stoic responded. “We too experience fear, but handle it differently. For example, when these people started running around, screaming, and fearing for their lives, I understood this wasn’t going to help me save myself or anyone here. So I calmed down, and realized that the storm can pass, and even if the ship sinks, I can still swim to the coast or die calmly.”

A Stoic defeats fear with logic. 

Aristotle gave the perfect definition of bravery. “Brave is not the man who doesn’t feel fear, because then we should call every lunatic a brave man. Brave is the man who does what needs to be done despite the feeling of fear.”

It’s perfectly normal to feel fear; it’s not normal to be paralyzed because of it.

What if your friend is in danger and you must save him?

What if you are the one who must speak up and uncover an injustice?

Will you be defeated by fear and join the list of cowards whose names are forever forgotten…

Or will you do the right thing and make the Stoics proud?

Till Next Time,

Said The Stoic

PS. For further reading, read this short Daily Stoic article about a badass Stoic philosopher who only spoke with one-liners.