{"type":"rich","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Transistor","provider_url":"https://transistor.fm","author_name":"ResponsAbility - Dialogues on Practical Knowledge and Bildung in Professional Studies","title":"#23 Nancy Sherman | Stoic Wisdom and the Soul of Moral Life ","html":"","width":"100%","height":180,"duration":2350,"description":"Our guest in this episode is Nancy Sherman, Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at Georgetown University and a leading expert on ancient ethics and modern moral psychology. Drawing on Aristotle and the Stoics, Nancy explores what it means to live well, to cultivate resilience without emotional suppression, and to nurture our capacity for connection in a fragmented world. She discusses how Stoic ideas have been both misunderstood and rediscovered—from Silicon Valley’s self-help culture to the search for calm and meaning among younger generations. Through themes of responsiveness, character formation, and moral self-knowledge, the conversation bridges ancient wisdom and contemporary challenges in education, leadership, and mental health.\n00:01:02 – Motivation and Driving Force\n00:04:37 – Aristotle and the Soul\n00:09:03 – Stoicism and Aristotle\n00:11:46 – Stoicism and the Self-Help Industry\n00:14:23 – Stoicism and Spiritual Practice\n00:18:50 – Stoicism and Bildung\n00:24:47 – ResponsAbility and Wise Response\n00:28:24 – Responsiveness in Education and Professional Life\n00:33:47 – Stoicism, Resilience, and Mental Health\n00:37:06 – Stoic Exercises in Higher Education?\nBetween Theory and Practice – Questions for Reflection\nHow might the insights from this dialogue inspire your own practice? The following questions are intended to inspire further inquiry, whether explored individually or in conversation with colleagues, students, or peers.\nNancy Sherman emphasizes that resilience is not simply a matter of self-control, but is deeply connected to our relationships, emotions, and social context. In your own professional life, how do you balance the desire to remain composed and effective with the willingness to acknowledge vulnerability, dependence, or loss? What might change if resilience were understood less as self-sufficiency and more as a relational capacity?\nThe Stoics encourage us to focus on what is within our control, while Aristotle reminds us that human life is...","thumbnail_url":"https://img.transistorcdn.com/CrFbTP4NhEnDEGQiy3DJA0GaXH1LyGw-ry7BpB-GvH0/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:400/h:400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS9hNzgw/YTQ3MDIwNjAyM2Jk/MDJiYzIwMjBmY2Yz/ZGVmMC5wbmc.webp","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300}