Stoics on the Frontier: A Report from Wyoming Stoic Camp
I was able to take much away from Stoicism in terms of how it works as a system of thought, and more importantly, what it does on a personal and practical level. My original intention aligned more with the latter of the two and I was not disappointed in any way. The morning, midday, and evening meditation exercises were phenomenal and helped instigate a habit of study. The location of the camp, being removed from everyday life and being closer to the natural world had a profound effect and I believe that it really helped bring Stoicism to life. (From a Participant’s Evaluation of Wyoming Stoic Camp)
May of 2020 was supposed to be the 7th iteration of Wyoming Stoic Camp. Obviously, due to COVID-19, we were unable to gather in the Rockies for our annual immersive Stoic experience. In lieu of an actual gathering, I wanted to offer some reflections on our experiences through the years. As the founder and director of the camp, I have found it to be a tremendously rewarding experience, and hope that others continue to do so as well.
Origins of Wyoming Stoic Camp
I came to Stoic philosophy first as a student majoring in philosophy and then in graduate studies. As such, I’ve been teaching and studying Stoic philosophy at some level for nearly three decades. However, for much of that time I approached Stoicism as merely an academic exercise. It wasn’t until later in life that Stoicism began to appeal to me as a philosophy of life — a way of living that could be applied to my own trials tribulations, and triumphs. The usefulness of Stoicism became apparent during a difficult period of my life. I can vividly recall quite specifically teaching Epictetus’ Handbook to an undergraduate class, and for the first time it actually spoke to me and my struggles with serious health challenges to myself and my family, and potentially career-ending difficulties at work. I realized that Stoic principles could help me live a better life even in the face of my problems. It was at this time when I started exploring what philosophers and others were doing with Stoicism recently and I ran across the Stoic Week project at the University of Exeter. On my own, I practiced a number of the exercises and started to apply Stoicism to my own life. I discovered it was quite successful in helping me through my challenges and that others might also find equanimity though Stoicism.
As I was working through the Stoic Week practices, I began to imagine how I might develop an opportunity for people to immerse themselves Stoicism and not only learn about Stoicism but have a chance to “live as a Stoic” for a period of time. Given that one of the central doctrines of Stoicism is that the goal of life is to live in agreement with nature and given that I happen to live and work in Wyoming, which is a place dominated by Nature as commonly conceived, I thought it would be possible to cultivate an immersive experience in the mountains near the university with Stoicism at the heart of that experience. My next step was to see if I could get my department head to endorse the project and maybe even provide some tangible support. My department head’s first reaction when I suggested such a camp experience was, “that’s the stupidest idea I’ve ever heard. It will never work, but go ahead and try it.”
With such unqualified support (or at least permission!), I proceeded to find two critical elements: a venue for this immersive Stoic experience and a batch of philosophical guinea pigs. Naturally I started with a nearby facility in the mountain forests not far from campus and with my own students. A dozen or so adventurous students volunteered to join me in the pilot version of this venture. Thus the first Wyoming Stoic Camp came into existence in May of 2014.
The initial Stoic Camp experience was quite successful. All of the participants, including myself, were able to study the Stoic texts more intensely than we had previously, and all were moved by the experience of living the principles. I decided to try to do it again and to broadcast its existence beyond the walls of the university. That next year a number of people from around the United States (as far away as New York City) decided to join us and we grew to 22 participants. In subsequent years the number of participants has grown to as many as 26 and they have come from as far away as both coasts of the United States, as well as Europe.
The Wyoming Stoic Camp Experience
We meet at the University of Wyoming campus in Laramie, Wyoming. Laramie is situated two and a half hours north of Denver, Colorado just over the border into Wyoming. Most participants traveling from outside of the area fly in to Denver and then either drive or take a shuttle up to Laramie. On the first day of camp we carpool to the site of the camp which is some 45 minutes outside of Laramie in the Snowy Range of the Rocky Mountains. The camp facility is rustic but not primitive. There are cabins with bunks, running water, and all of our food is provided by the staff at the facility. We generally meet in a spacious room with a fireplace and arrange furniture into a large circle for discussions.
Upon arrival the participants find their sleeping quarters in the cabins. Then we gather to cover logistics and hand out materials which include copies of the works of Epictetus and Marcus Aurelius. We also distribute a workbook which includes a variety of meditative and journaling exercises derived from the Stoic Week project but adapted to our schedule and purposes. Participants are encouraged to make use of those as they see fit and are given opportunities to discuss aspects of the exercises in groups if they wish. We then begin our first discussion section of the camp and we discuss things until dinner time at about 5:30pm. After dinner there is time to explore the area, which borders a national forest. There are hiking trails and wildlife encounters including sightings of deer, moose, elk, and the occasional bear or Mountain lion have been reported.
The next 3 days of Camp go roughly like this. We arise to get ready for the day and have breakfast. After breakfast, we spend about three hours in a large group discussing texts from Marcus or Epictetus and then break for lunch around noon. After lunch there’s usually time for some more hiking or some campers might drive up higher into the Snowy Range to explore. Then we have another session of about three hours broken up into smaller groups to discuss some central texts at the pace of the group. Once again, around 5:30 p.m. we have dinner. In the evenings guest speakers (typically from the University of Wyoming) offer informal discussions of some aspect of philosophy related to Stoicism. Some of the topics that have been discussed in these evening sessions include histories of the notion of philosophia in antiquity, criticisms of Stoic ethics from a contemporary perspective, comparative analysis of the metaphysics of Spinoza that of the Stoics, Viktor Frankl’s Man’s Search for Meaning, and other topics both critical and complimentary. Finally on the final day of Stoic Camp, weather (and Fate) permitting, we arise in the darkness pre-dawn to hike to the top of the ridge and watch the sunrise while contemplating the following well-known passage:
The Pythagoreans were wont betimes in the morning the first thing they did, to look up unto the heavens, to put themselves in mind of them who constantly and invariably did perform their task: as also to put themselves in mind of orderliness, or good order, and of purity, and of naked simplicity. For no star or planet hath any cover before it.” (Meditations, 11.27)
There is then a final morning discussion in which we all take turns offering concluding remarks. Then it is time to pack up and head back to Laramie by midday and disperse having saturated ourselves in Stoic philosophy, and reinvigorated our desire to live in agreement with nature.
At this point I wanted to share some details of the sort of discussions that have occurred at camp. The actual content of any particular discussion on any particular text has varied dependent upon the group quite a bit. Sometimes the discussions are intensely driven by technical philosophical questions and other times they are driven by a more relaxed concerned with understanding the basics of Stoicism, but most of the time it has been what I see as a rather healthy blend of the two. There is, of course, no way I could effectively summarize the details of several hours of reading and discussion, but I hope to give some indication of the sort of discussions we have had.
Examples of Day One Reflections
After introductions, we begin with a wide-ranging discussion of various aspects of Stoicism. Our focus for the camp is on the ethical works of Marcus and Epictetus, but I have found that some familiarity with other aspects of Stoicism can deepen one’s appreciation and understanding. I begin with some basic history, tracing Stoic lineage from Socrates, through the Cynics, and finally to Zeno, Cleanthes, Chrysippus and their successors. Then we discuss some aspects of the role of Stoicism in the Roman period, with emphasis of Marcus and Epictetus. I then explain the three branches of philosophy, and some details of their views on logic and especially physics.
Next we begin looking at Epictetus, in particular the first paragraph of Enchiridion 1,
Some things are up to us and some are not up to us. Our opinions are up to us, and our impulses, desires, aversions — in short, whatever is our own doing. Our bodies are not up to us, not are our possessions, our reputations, or our public offices, or, that is, whatever is not our own doing.
This passage is one of the clearest expressions of what has come to be called the “dichotomy of control.” We spend a good deal of time exploring the dichotomy, how to interpret it, and how to apply it to our thinking about ourselves in relation to the rest of the world. Then we break for dinner.
After dinner, we break up into smaller groups of 4 or 5 to begin reading Marcus’s Meditations, beginning with Book 2 which starts with a famous passage:
Say to yourself at the start of the day, I shall meet with meddling, ungrateful, violent, treacherous, envious, and unsociable people. They are subject to all these defects because they have no knowledge of good and bad. But I, who have observed the nature of the good, and seen that it is the right; and of the bad, and seen that it is the wrong, and of the wrongdoer himself, and seen that his nature is akin to my own — not because he is of the same blood and seed, but because he shares as I do in mind and thus in a portion of the divine — I, then, can neither be harmed by these people, nor become angry with one who is akin to me, nor can I hate him, for we have come into being to work together, like feet, hands, eyelids, or the two rows of teeth in our upper and lower jaws. To work against one another is therefore contrary to nature; and to be angry with another person and turn away from him is surely to work against him.
The discussion of this passage is invariably lively from the start. Everyone seemed to easily identify the sort of situation that Marcus describes from their own lives at work, school, in traffic, or even at home. The passage also serves as a good starting point for introducing the notion of “cosmopolitanism,” or the idea that we are all citizens of the universe, and thus part of the same whole, and of how that way of understanding ourselves should guide our actions and choices.
I make a point of roaming among groups, and they ask questions of me, or I simply join in the discussion. A few passages typically draw the attention of most, if not all, of the groups. One that bears mentioning is Meditations 2.5:
At every hour devote yourself in a resolute spirit, as befits a Roman and a man, to fulfilling the task in hand with a scrupulous and unaffected dignity, and with love for others, and independence, and justice; and grant yourself a respite from all other preoccupations. And this you will achieve if you perform every action as though it were your last, freed from all lack of purpose and wilful deviation from the rule of reason, and free from duplicity, self-love, and dissatisfaction with what is allotted to you. You see how few are the things that a person needs to master if he is to live a tranquil and god-fearing life; for the gods themselves will demand nothing more from one who observes these precepts.
Many of the campers compared this to notions such as mindfulness and being present. I point out to them the practice of prosoche (often translated as “mindfulness” or “attention”) expressed in the passage.
We continue to discuss passages from Meditations 2 for the rest of the time until, around 8:30pm, the groups began to disperse to go off to the cabins or just remained to engage in conversation.
The remainder of the days continue with discussions of that nature. Typically we read Epictetus in the morning, either from the Enchiridion or Discourses, and we read Marcus in the afternoons in small groups. Perhaps in further iterations we may incorporate some works from Seneca or other sources.
What Do the Participants Say?
I asked participants to share with me what they would want others to know, who might be considering joining us at Wyoming Stoic Camp. Here are a few of their responses:
Stoic Camp offers attendees an interesting and unique experience that is seldom explored in traditional philosophical studies or day-to-day life. … For those who make a sincere attempt to explore the practices of stoicism, there is much one can learn regarding self-control and living in accordance with nature. The setting and atmosphere of Stoic Camp is a great way to introduce new people to the discipline while offering a helpful refresher on stoic values and practices for those who continue to come back year after year. — CM
I’ve bounced around a variety of spiritual events. From the big names to the woo-woo and the romantic life-hack nonsense. Each one, promising a “shift” or a way to “level-up.” You get a high for a week after, but it’s a Starbucks life philosophy. Stoic Camp was the complete opposite of that stuff. It’s void of the platitudes, the outcomes, and the sexy-sounding conquer life with some hacks nonsense — which is why this Stoic camp is unique. … It was easily hands down the best spiritual based event I have attended. I know for sure, there will be no one-week high like other events. Instead, I know the teachings are instilled and are long-lasting. — JC
Stoic Camp delivered precisely what had been advertised; that is, a unique and immersive experience in Stoic philosophy. There was much available in terms of resources if one desired to come to a deeper appreciation and understanding- which I did. … I was able to take much away from Stoicism in terms of how it works as a system of thought, and more importantly, what it does on a personal and practical level. My original intention aligned more with the latter of the two and I was not disappointed in any way. The morning, midday, and evening meditation exercises were phenomenal and helped instigate a habit of study. The location of the camp, being removed from everyday life and being closer to the natural world had a profound effect and I believe that it really helped bring Stoicism to life. — KB
UW’s Stoic Camp provides us with an opportunity to temporarily step away from these issues and examine the tools and teachings of Epictetus and Marcus Aurelius in a concentrated and focused fashion and reason them out with peers from all kinds of distinct backgrounds, in order to then return to our daily lives with these “tools at the ready” as Marcus himself suggests we do. — CM
Stoic Camp and stoic philosophy as a whole have been my first experience with a worldview/spirituality/religion that truly speaks to me and benefits my wellbeing. In the past, I have felt incompatible with, or even alienated by certain churches and religions. … While stoicism may not be a bonified [sic] religion, I feel that it is a complete world view grounded in reason, and full of valuable insights into both the meaning and proper practice of human life. … I am slowly learning to focus on what I can control in the present moment, and accepting whatever the future may bring when it brings it. I am continuing to read the texts from Stoic Camp in hopes of further improving the way I view and handle life. — CF
We hope to continue to grow Wyoming Stoic Camp into the future and to bring Stoicism to a larger and more diverse group of participants. If you think you might be interested in joining us in 2021, or for more information, see: http://www.uwyo.edu/philosophy/stoic-camp/
If you have questions, please contact Rob Colter at: uwyostoiccamp@gmail.com
