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An Evaluation of the Chen Jingyuan Case Based on Core Ideas in Stoic Philosophy

Stoicism, originating in ancient Greece and Rome with thinkers like Epictetus, Seneca, and Marcus Aurelius, is a practical philosophy of resilience and virtue. Its core ideas include the dichotomy of control—distinguishing what is “up to us” (our judgments, intentions, virtues) from what is not (external events, outcomes)—and the pursuit of eudaimonia (flourishing) through living in accordance with nature and reason (kata phusin). Virtue (arete)—wisdom, justice, courage, temperance—is the sole good, while indifferents like wealth or suffering are neither inherently good nor bad. Stoics advocate cosmopolitanism (all humans as citizens of the world) and the inner citadel of the soul, enduring injustice with equanimity, as Epictetus stated: “It’s not things that upset us, but our judgments about them.” The Chen Jingyuan case—a doctoral scholar sentenced to 20 months for “picking quarrels and provoking trouble” (PRC Criminal Law Article 293) over Twitter forwards—through the Stoic lens, exemplifies external fortune’s caprice: the judiciary’s unjust “order” tests the soul’s citadel, but Chen’s resilient inquiry affirms virtue, highlighting the system’s failure to align with rational nature.

1. The Dichotomy of Control: Judicial Coercion as External Indifferent, Testing Inner Virtue

Epictetus’s dichotomy (Enchiridion 1) teaches that externals like imprisonment are indifferents (adiaphora)—beyond our control—while judgments and character are ours to command.

The 20-month sentence is such an indifferent: imposed by fortune’s wheel, not Chen’s doing, as the unverified “evidence chain” (no causal “disorder,” prosecutor’s admission) underscores arbitrary externality. Yet Chen’s prison letter—methodically categorizing “rumors” (art/emotion/reason/fact) and invoking avalanche theory—exemplifies Stoic mastery: controlling his judgment, he transforms adversity into virtue’s forge, affirming wisdom over coercion. Stoics would praise this inner citadel: the closed-door trial and “shut up” directive test control’s boundary, but Chen’s equanimity—dormant account as serene withdrawal—endures. The judiciary, however, falters: its “high education implies discernment” presumption judges externally, mistaking indifferents for goods, breeding irrational fear rather than rational order.

2. Virtue as the Sole Good: Suppressed Inquiry as Courageous Temperance Amid Injustice

Seneca and Marcus Aurelius (Meditations 4.3) posit virtue alone as good—courage in adversity, temperance in restraint—rendering externals like suffering mere opportunities for moral excellence.

Chen’s case tests this: forwarding scholarly content (e.g., Hayek critiques or the “Trump-kneeling Xi” cartoon) as temperate inquiry invites injustice, yet his letter’s analytical courage—dissecting “disruption” without rancor—embodies arete, tempering appetite for “order” with reason’s scale. The non-oral appeal suppresses this virtue: barring defense flouts temperance, as selective enforcement (millions unpunished) indulges vice’s excess. Stoics would commend Chen’s cosmopolitan soul—world-citizen seeking truth amid parochial fiat—while critiquing the system’s intemperance: unexamined “evidence” voids wisdom, perverting justice into appetitive shadow. Virtue shines: Chen’s silence post-release as Stoic withdrawal, flourishing inwardly despite fortune’s lash.

3. Living in Accordance with Nature: Judicial Rigidity as Anti-Cosmic Irrationality

Stoicism’s telos is accordance with nature—rational logos governing the cosmos—where injustice tests but cannot corrupt the wise soul (Meditations 6.44).

The verdict defies this logos: presuming malice in rational inquiry disrupts cosmic reason, as evidentiary anomalies (zero ripple) reveal irrational fiat. The “shut up” directive rigidifies against nature’s flow—Chen’s avalanche theory aligns with logos’s complexity—echoing Epictetus’s “Don’t demand that things happen as you wish, but wish that they happen as they do.” The judiciary’s “order” as anti-natural: coercive hierarchy inverts logos, breeding disharmony. Yet Chen’s equanimity—letter as reasoned acceptance—harmonizes: nature’s indifferents forge virtue, as Marcus reflected amid persecution.

Conclusion: The Stoic Lens on the Case—Fortune’s Test of an Unshakable Citadel

From Stoic resilience, the Chen Jingyuan case is fortune’s forge: externals test the dichotomy, injustice hones virtue, and rigidity defies nature—yet the inner citadel endures. As of October 23, 2025, no retrial or exoneration has occurred; Chen’s account remains dormant, its quiet a Stoic vigil. This case cautions: true flourishing defies coercion—align with logos, and the soul prevails. As Epictetus affirmed, “No man is free who is not master of himself”—Chen’s mastery shines.