EPICTETUS: DIAIRESIS AND CONTRADIAIRESIS

Abstract

‘Diairesis’ and ‘Counterdiairesis’ are the names that the activity of our proairesis takes when it operates the distinction between what is proairetic and what is aproairetic. When this distinction is done in the right way, Epictetus says that our proairesis is ‘right’ and is using diairesis. When this distinction is not done, or is done in a way that is not the right one, Epictetus says that our proairesis is ‘wrong’ and is using counterdiairesis (this is a term that we don’t actually find in the extant works of Epictetus, but that he clearly suggests and that I have introduced for simplicity).