Lecture 19: On clothing and shelter.
Such were his opinions on food. He also thought it best to provide moderate covering for the body, not expensive and superfluous, for he said that one ought to use clothing and shoes in exactly the same way as armor, that is for the protection of the body and not for display.
Therefore just as the most powerful weapons and those best calculated to protect the bearer are the best, and not those which attract the eye by their sheen, so likewise the garment or shoe which is most useful for the body is best, and not one which causes the foolish to turn and stare.
For the covering should at once render the thing covered better and stronger than its natural condition, rather than weaker and worse.
Some of the earlier lectures were too controversial for one of my old professors to teach, because the arguments are too unorthodox in our age of political correctness. The man was certainly not a coward, but he knew how to pick his battles; reason has little effect on narrow prejudices, whatever side of the aisle they may come from.
Now, in contrast, the remaining lectures may seem terribly petty and shallow, all about food, and clothes, and household furnishings, and even about how to cut hair. Don’t we have far more important things to worry about?
Well yes, but all of these very immediate concerns are expressions of deeper principles; the Stoic will choose to live very differently than the usual drone, and there are very good reasons why. Since philosophy should be ordered toward living, and not just thinking, higher values manifest themselves in daily practice.
What is the most suitable clothing? My personal preferences will obviously play into it, and there may well be a wide range of options, but those should be in harmony with the requirements of Nature. I can therefore only know what clothes to wear when I can first make sense of why I should be wearing them to begin with.
I must always remind myself that Stoic norms never need to be confusing or mysterious; The end is virtue, and all other circumstances are meant as a means to that end.
If clothing can help to protect the health of the body, this can surely be a good thing, because then the health of body can further help to encourage the health of the soul. What else do I really need to know?
Does the tool get the job done? Then I should be completely satisfied with it, knowing that it has worked precisely as it should. Did the armor keep me from injury? Did the weapon hold my foe at bay? It is more than enough.
It might be nice, however, if those clothes could also possess a bit of class. It couldn’t hurt, could it, to add some style?
In and of itself, it would do no harm for them to have clean lines that appeal to the eye, but the danger will be, as always, in my intentions; the reasons why I might want something will change its merit and its worth for me.
First, is my insistence on good looks in any way taking away from the need for what is most useful, humble, and moderate? It is no accident that the most fashionable clothes are often the least practical.
Second, and perhaps more importantly, why am I so interested in turning heads? The kind of people who care about image and appearance are not the ones I should worry about winning over, and my own character suffers deeply when I pursue an exterior image at the expense of an interior improvement.
Some say that “the clothes make the man.” They might be right if they mean that what he wears should be a reflection of his character, but they are quite wrong if they mean that his value is determined by what he wears.
Written in 6/2000
IMAGE: The Emperor as Philosopher (c 180-200 AD)
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