Why Is Stoicism Hot Right Now?

First, you have to accept my premise that it is. Few have put Stoicism more on the pop culture map than Ryan Holiday, former marketing director of American Apparel.

But even when Stoicism is not named overtly, go to any yoga class or new age corporate workshop and you’ll find its influence. Macklemore’s line, “I don’t control my life, but I control how I react to it,” is peak Stoicism. Any life philosophy that places the emphasis on self-control rather than alteration of one’s environment is Stoic.

Stoicism began as a self-help philosophy for Roman slaves to feel a sense of inner freedom, despite being outwardly constrained. It was so popular, though, that it became the favored philosophy of Roman Emperor, Marcus Aurelius.

Apparently, you don’t need to be a slave to feel constrained. (Perhaps it is those who are most accustomed to getting their way who feel most unfree when their wills are opposed.) Stoicism offers the promise of serenity in the midst of environmental chaos. What’s not to love?

Yet Stoicism also seems to be a sign of decadence. Stoicism rises in popularity when people lose faith in their environments. A rise in Stoicism is a sign of what Peter Thiel calls “The Great Stagnation,” the thesis that we are becoming less ambitious and innovative. It’s a form of pessimism rebranded as resilience (“we make the best with what we have.”)

If I’m right, then we should expect less Stoicism in societies that feel confidant in their ability to make moral, political, and technological progress.

Pierre Teilhard de Chardin describes Stoicism as a form of “immobilism”—the view that nothing changes. So, to all the Stoics reading this, I ask, “Do you think things can and should be better in society?” Or is such a line of questioning a distraction from the only question that matters: “How can I find equanimity?”

Why, reader, do you think Stoicism is hot right now? And is Stoicism under-valued or over-hyped?