A METÁFORA DO ATOR NO ESTOICISMO E SUA RECEPÇÃO NO MANUAL DE EPICTETO

Abstract

This article examines the metaphor of the actor in Stoicism, arguing that it is not
merely a rhetorical device but a fundamental conceptual structure of Stoic ethics. Beginning with
Cynic antecedents, especially Bion of Borysthenes, the study traces the progressive development
of this metaphor in Zeno of Citium, Ariston of Chios, Panaetius of Rhodes, and it’s reception in
The Manual of Epictetus, as well as its reappearance in Seneca and Marcus Aurelius. In Ariston,
the actor metaphor expresses radical ethical indifference toward contingent roles, emphasizing
the sage’s inner neutrality; in Panaetius, it is systematized in the doctrine of the four personae,
functioning as a heuristic method for practical deliberation about officia; in Epictetus, it is further
developed through the notions of prosōpon, schesis, and onoma, which articulate role, relation,
and normative identity in the determination of kathēkon. Finally, the article shows how, in Roman
Stoicism, the actor metaphor is closely linked to reflections on death, understood as the serene
exit from the stage at the end of life’s drama. To live well is thus to perform one’s role rationally,
and to die well is to leave the stage with gratitude and in accordance with the cosmic logos.