The Practicing Stoic by Ward Farnsworth

The Practicing Stoic by Ward Farnsworth gives an accessible overview of Stoicism. It connects the core Stoic principles, its most famous writers, and similar minds to everyday life.

Summary

In thirteen chapters, Ward Farnsworth manages to paint an easy-to-understand picture of the modern-day application of Stoicism. Giving his thoughts and observations extra weight by accompanying them with relevant quotes from the Stoic minds and other philosophers who had similar ideas.

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The chapters in this book vary in topics such as Judgment, Death, What Others Think, Emotion, and more. Each chapter starts with a basic outline of the principle discussed. The author gives his vision, but ensures it doesn’t become too academic. This increases the accessibility of the text and the lessons explained.

The natural flow allows the chapters to be linked to each other. At the end of each topic, The Practicing Stoic gives us several relevant quotes to build out the theory of the principle. Ward Farnsworth uses the most famous Stoic writers, such as Seneca, Epictetus, and Marcus Aurelius. He then adds more contemporary philosophers like Cicero, Michel de Montaigne, Schopenhauer, and Plutarch to build on the points.

Review

The accessibility of the writing and the down-to-earth way of explaining the content make this an excellent read for the beginning Stoic. For the more advanced Stoic practitioner, there are a lot of new angles and ways of looking at the philosophy to make this a great addition to any Stoic bookshelf.

Ward Farnsworth is clear on his goal with the Practicing Stoic, which shows throughout the text. He wanted to create a guide, broken down into thirteen chapters, for everyone to pick up, read, and apply. In addition, it shows that Stoic philosophy is still relevant and how we can use it to improve our lives. The Practicing Stoic takes a rather unique approach to this compared to other Stoic writings. There aren’t any clear practices, but by describing the principles the way the author does, it becomes an actionable book.

Recommendation

The Practicing Stoic is one of those books I would have liked to have read earlier on. It is a complete guide and delivers the main concepts of Stoicism in a structured way. The quotes at the end of each chapter add an extra dimension. They can inspire any reader to continue their journey.

You can find The Practicing Stoic on Amazon.

It is one of those iconic contemporary books on Stoicism. Where the author is able to capture the essence of the philosophy. While understanding that one can dive deeper, it is not necessary to be able to use the main principles and start living better.

Final thoughts

This book is on par with How to Think Like a Roman Emperor by Donald Robertson, How to Be a Stoic by Massimo Pigliucci, and The Guide to the Good Life by William Irvine. It’s not as detailed as The Inner Citadel by Pierre Hadot, but that one mainly focuses on the Meditations by Marcus Aurelius.

The Practicing Stoic is an easy read and contains a lot of interesting insights. There is no doubt that this is a great book to read for anyone interested in Stoic philosophy and its application.

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Author Bio

Benny Voncken is the co-founder of Via Stoica, where he helps people apply Stoic philosophy to modern life. He is a Stoic coach, writer, and podcast host of The Via Stoica Podcast. With almost a decade of teaching experience and daily Stoic practice, Benny creates resources, workshops, and reflections that make ancient wisdom practical today.