Another major skeptical philosopher is Sextus Empiric. He spent a lot of intellectual effort criticizing dogmatism. The only reasonable basis he considered skepticism, which surprisingly combined statement and denial. In his opinion, no man can have any knowledge, because the essence of any thing is a mystery, and it is closed from any living creature on earth. As a matter of fact, these are not things at all, but only their appearance.
The Sextus Empiric acknowledges the ability of man to think, reason and speak, but assures that this is just an illusion, and it seems to people that they do it all.
A special merit of Sextus is the fact that he summed up all the provisions of skepticism and formulated its essence, which is that the skeptics, like everyone else, have a desire to live and are carriers of a number of beliefs. But the whole point is that it is impossible to determine the true and apparent, the known and the unknown.
Thus, the philosophy of skepticism assured a person that nothing can be asserted and everything should be doubted, because feelings and impressions are different for everyone, and it is impossible to determine which of them is true.
Representatives of Stoicism in Roman philosophy: Cicero, Seneca, Marcus Aurelius.
Stoicism originated about 300 BC. This direction was the idea of the existence of one God. Unlike the skeptics calling for ataxia, the Stoics believed that a man must achieve apathy, that is, a completely equal attitude to all the phenomena that arise in life, whether they are happy or unhappy, successful or unsuccessful. They also proved that a man is not free from his destiny, and that he is deceived not by feelings, but by conditions.
This ancient Greek philosophy became very popular and easily won the minds of the ancient Romans. In Roman science, its largest representative is Cicero. He left many treatises in which his philosophical thought is captured. However, his tasks were broader than preaching any ideas. He wanted to make Roman philosophy the first in the world.
Against this background, he developed his own ideas, deeply convinced that philosophy could heal the souls of people, bring them happiness, which is readily available. However, Cicero is not a pure stoic. His views were more eclectic, and he learned a lot from other currents, such as scepticism.
Seneca is the creator of late stoicism, the "new stoicism". For him, philosophy was a way of adapting to the world, an opportunity to settle in it. Dividing philosophy into several directions (physical, logical and ethical), he himself was a follower of the latter, focusing on practice, not theory. Seneca believed that one cannot separate wisdom and cognition. On the contrary, according to his views, wisdom could be achieved through knowledge.
He believed that the main property was the stagnation, and the way of its eternal movement was the intellect. In his opinion, the soul is immortal and has such property as body, and he contrasted these categories (soul and body). In Seneca's philosophical views, the world appeared as a necessity, having the character of inexorable, and this circumstance makes equal all: slaves and free. All of them must submit to inevitability, to all trials with humility, to despise the very perishability of existence.
The obedience to destiny is expressed by faith in God, who is not alone in the universe, but in the multitude of them. At the same time, they are much higher than the man on moral qualities, the main of which is kindness. Seneca calls its harmony a sign and proof of divine presence in the world.
Nature, as well as man, can not exist without God. It is he who is the force that makes life whole. But all this does not mean that a man should not act. Without giving in to despair, a person should make new attempts to eventually reach his goal.
The philosopher called for overcoming passions and striving for perfection in moral and moral terms. First, he believed, it is necessary to correct the soul, instead of complaining about the conditions of his life. Helping those living nearby, doing good deeds, forgiving everybody, a person becomes better and, thus, makes his existence meaningful. Thus, the philosophy of Seneca was reduced to the idea of a virtuous way of life.
Marcus Aurelius is the third most important member of this movement. His Stoic views were reflected in Reflections. Like the other stoics, he rejects the domination of the flesh over the mind and soul.
The philosopher emphasizes the importance of work, as he can bring comfort to the man himself, give meaning to his life, which proceeds very quickly and can simply not be in time. The basis of the organization of life is adherence to nature and the principle of kindness with the rejection of all evil.
He believed that everything in nature is already ordered in order, but the knowledge of the world is hidden from everyone. It is necessary to build one's life according to the idea of the common good, to wish everyone good and to create.
In general, the Stoics condemned the malevolence of actions, intrigue, pursuit of material goods. They called for the implementation of positive ideas in life. Happiness, in their opinion, was achieved through the performance of duty and deeds for the benefit of society.