Stoic Ways

What remains today of the powerful ideal of a stoic lifestyle that dates back to antiquity? In times of increasing extremes and catastrophes, is it even possible to lead a balanced, mediated life, or do we only have to register the loss of serenity, the plunge into irreconcilability, into indifferent, paralysing isolation?

In a fascinating tour de force, Helmut Lethen describes the search for possibilities of serenity, from the cold world of the Baroque to the wars of the present, but also shows how stoic principles have been shipwrecked and the slogan «You must lead your life!» hardly stands a chance today. The demand for «fitness for defence» is met with bodies that are not fit for it. The tension between empathy and factual distancing is already overwhelming people in front of the television. How is it possible to live a life of balance today?
Helmut Lethen repeatedly returns to his own experiences and observations of our present day - which makes this haunting, thought-provoking essay not least a very personal life book.

Helmut Lethen, born in 1939, taught at the University of Utrecht from 1977 to 1996, after which he took over the Chair of Modern German Literature in Rostock. From 2007 to 2016, he headed the International Research Centre for Cultural Studies in Vienna. His book «Verhaltenslehren der Kälte» (1994) is considered a standard work, while «Der Schatten des Fotografen» (2014) was awarded the Leipzig Book Fair Prize. His most recent publications are the highly acclaimed autobiography «Denn für dieses Leben ist der Mensch nicht schlau genug» (2020) and «Der Sommer des Großinquisitors. On the fascination of evil» (2022).

Moderation
Robert Misik, Author and journalist

Helmut Lethen:
Stoic gaits
Attempts at a lifestyle
rowohlt Berlin, 2025, 21,99 €