On Exile 8

. . . "But, you insist, Euripides says that exiles lose their personal liberty when they are deprived of their freedom of speech. For he represents Jocasta asking Polynices her son what misfortunes an exile has to bear. He answers,

" 'One greatest of all, that he has not freedom of speech.'

"She replies,

" ' You name the plight of a slave, not to be able to say what one thinks.'

"But I should say in rejoinder:

" 'You are right, Euripides, when you say that it is the condition of a slave not to say what one thinks when one ought to speak, for it is not always, nor everywhere, nor before everyone that we should say what we think.

" 'But that one point, it seems to me, is not well-taken, that exiles do not have freedom of speech, if to you freedom of speech means not suppressing whatever one chances to think. For it is not as exiles that men fear to say what they think, but as men afraid lest from speaking pain or death or punishment or some such other thing shall befall them.

" 'Fear is the cause of this, not exile. For to many people, nay to most, even though dwelling safely in their native city, fear of what seem to them dire consequences of free speech is present.

" 'However, the courageous man, in exile no less than at home, is dauntless in the face of all such fears; for that reason also he has the courage to say what he thinks equally at home or in exile.'

"Such are the things one might reply to Euripides." . . .

--Musonius Rufus, Fragment 9 (tr Lutz)

Exile need not deny us prosperity or reputation, and most importantly it need not deny us happiness, because our happiness depends upon what we do, not upon what is done to us.

It may still, however, remove something else that is very dear to us, our freedom of speech. Is it not a curse to be hindered from speaking our minds, from voicing our thoughts and feelings? To suppress such a liberty is surely hard to bear?

I need to consider in what way anyone can limit my words, or any of my thoughts or actions, for that matter. Another person can certainly threaten me, intimidate me, punish me, restrain me physically, or even do me physical or emotional harm. A person can even end my life. What no one can do, however, is control my own judgment and decisions. These are entirely up to me, and even if I were to be harmed or killed for them, I am the one who has still made the choice.

It isn't the threat made by someone that hinders me, but rather my fear of the consequences of the threat. Now fear is a powerful emotion, but as long as I am still able to reason, I am able to make of it whatever I will.

Musonius is simply pointing us back to a basic tenet of Stoicism, the distinction between what is within and beyond my power. It is the gravity of the punishment that worries me when I choose not to speak my mind.

How much I fear the loss of something tells me precisely how deeply I value it. If you tell me I will lose my property or reputation, that I will be punished by being locked away or even killed, I will gladly curtail my freedom of speech, or of any action, if I care for wealth, honor, or my body more than I care for my love of truth and honesty. If, however, I understand that all worldly goods are simply granted by fortune, while virtue is my highest good that is completely within my power, the decision will become quite a bit easier.

I cringe with shame when I think of the times I should have spoken out, but buttoned my lip because I feared losing status or position. For a people so enamored of our freedom of thought and expression, we are remarkably docile and cowardly when we are threatened with losing power or influence.

I can no longer count the times I've heard people says something like "I really don't want to do this, but I don't have a choice." Actually, we always have a choice, and what we really mean is that we may think something is wrong, but we are willing to suspend our power to act out of a fear of the consequences.

"But I could lose my job!" Alright then, you've lost your job. But what have you lost by not standing up for what is right and fair? We sell our souls for trinkets.

Only the Stoic recognition that our own virtue is our highest good can help me to understand that my own failure to live rightly is the only thing I need to fear. Anything else is just a reshuffling of our circumstances, of things that were beyond my power to begin with. This is a powerful tool in practicing courage.

Written in 8/2013


Image: Domenico Peterlini, Dante in Exile (c. 1860):