PhilosophyTube is usually pretty cool but I think this is kind of an L? She gets into some pretty heavy criticisms of the traditional Stoic philosophy and seem to just dismiss them all at the end. I don't know how someone can say that "You can be in literal chains and be the freest person in the world if you are a sage" with a straight face. I know it's technically true from some perspectives but it just seems so hollow compared to everything else in the video. Mental freedom doesn't help someone when they're doing a daily 12 hour shift that drives them to the edge of exhaustion and takes away everything they enjoy in life.

None of this is me criticizing Stoicism, btw, I don't think I'm smart enough to, just felt like a weird end to the discussion part of the video

Maybe, I'm just not familiar enough with PhilosophyTube's format?

  • Mardoniush [she/her]
    ·
    1 year ago

    Having done quite a bit of Philosophy and read more I really do find she stops where the question gets interesting.

    Also I feel her insistence on assuming people argue in good faith stops her from putting forth her own opinion on the matter, which means the praxis that is supposed to follow from a philisophical investigation is never stated.

    Philosophy should never be navel gazing, it should always result in a specific call to action.