To What Are You a Servant?

[DISCLAIMER]

As Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) is informed by Stoic philosophy, this blog entry is part of an ongoing series regarding a book entitled The Daily Stoic: 366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perseverance, and the Art of Living by Ryan Holiday and Stephen Hanselman.

The authors quote ancient Stoic philosopher Seneca’s first century AD fabula crepidata (Roman tragedy with Greek subject) Thyestes, as follows: “Tantalus: The highest power is— Thyestes: No power, if you desire nothing” (page 136).

Thyestes’s response is based on thinking which is rational (in accordance with both logic and reason). To examine his perspective, I invite you to consider a modus ponens syllogism (if p, then q; p; therefore, q):

If you desire nothing, then there isn’t anything that maintains power over you. You desire nothing. Therefore, there isn’t anything that maintains power over you.

Some may argue that “nothing” and “anything” do a lot of heavy lifting in that syllogistic example. For instance, religious person X may argue that a deity wields power over you. As well, political person Y may conclude that the government possesses power over you.

These challenges may be the case, as absolute statements may not be as useful as one otherwise may think. Therefore, I encourage you to examine Thyestes’s outlook when using a modified hypothetical syllogism (if p, then q; if q, then r; therefore, if p, then r).

If you desire little, then there aren’t many things which maintain power over you. If there aren’t many things which maintain power over you, then you’re less likely to be a servant to various elements in life. Therefore, if you desire little, then you’re less likely to be a servant to various elements in life.

I argue that this syllogistic proposal is in accordance with both logic (the interrelation or sequence of facts or events when seen as inevitable or predictable) and reason (a statement offered in explanation or justification). Regarding this view, the authors state (page 136):

In the modern world, our interactions with tyranny are a bit more voluntary than they were in ancient times. We put up with our controlling boss, though we could probably get a different job if we wanted.

We change how we dress or refrain from saying what we actually think? Because we want to fit in with some cool group.

We put up with cruel critics or customers? Because we want their approval. In these cases, their power exists because of our wants. You change that, and you’re free.

If you desire little, then you’re less likely to be a servant to various elements in life. As illustrated by authors of The Daily Stoic, you can find a different job, alter how you dress, or tolerate critics and customers. After all, you aren’t literally a servant to any of these elements.

Rather, it’s your desires which enslave you in this regard. To what are you a servant? Your desires! That’s from where genuine power over you stems. Further addressing this matter, authors of The Daily Stoic conclude (page 136):

The late fashion photographer Bill Cunningham occasionally declined to invoice magazines for his work. When a young upstart asked him why that was, Cunningham’s response was epic: “If you don’t take money, they can’t tell you what to do, kid.”

Remember: taking the money, wanting the money—proverbially or literally—makes you a servant to the people who have it. Indifference to it, as Seneca put it, turns the highest power into no power, at least as far as your life is concerned.

In consideration of the view shared by the authors, I’ll ask that you forgive me a personal anecdote. Years ago, I decided to take my childhood appreciation for photography to a new level. I entered into the realm of amateur fashion photography, nowhere on the level of Cunningham.

Nevertheless, I refused payment for photoshoots. Often, I was asked about my decision in this regard. “You could make a lot of money, so why aren’t you charging these models?” one friend asked. The answer was simple.

Even though I’d never heard of Cunningham’s response until reading The Daily Stoic, I conducted my hobby of photography from a similar viewpoint. None of the models with whom I worked had power over me. They couldn’t tell me what to do. I wasn’t their servant!

Had I accepted payment for services rendered, my desire to please others – with monetary backing of the imagined indentured servitude – would’ve deprived me of self-empowerment. No thank you! I was a free individual. Now, I invite you to ask yourself. To what are you a servant?

If you’re looking for a provider who tries to work to help understand how thinking impacts physical, mental, emotional, and behavioral elements of your life—helping you to sharpen your critical thinking skills, I invite you to reach out today by using the contact widget on my website.

As a psychotherapist, I’m pleased to try to help people with an assortment of issues ranging from anger (hostility, rage, and aggression) to relational issues, adjustment matters, trauma experience, justice involvement, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, anxiety and depression, and other mood or personality-related matters.

At Hollings Therapy, LLC, serving all of Texas, I aim to treat clients with dignity and respect while offering a multi-lensed approach to the practice of psychotherapy and life coaching. My mission includes: Prioritizing the cognitive and emotive needs of clients, an overall reduction in client suffering, and supporting sustainable growth for the clients I serve. Rather than simply trying to help you to feel better, I want to try to help you get better!

Deric Hollings, LPC, LCSW

References:

Daily Stoic. (n.d.). Translating the Stoics: An interview with “The Daily Stoic” co-author Stephen Hanselman. Retrieved from https://dailystoic.com/stephen-hanselman-interview/

Holiday, R. and Hanselman, S. (2016). The daily stoic: 366 meditations on wisdom, perseverance, and the art of living. Penguin Random House LLC. Retrieved from https://www.pdfdrive.com/the-daily-stoic-366-meditations-on-wisdom-perseverance-and-the-art-of-living-d61378067.html

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