The Problem of “Stoic Fate” Or whether Herbert of Cherbury was a Lipsian2

In this paper I explore what the term “stoic fate” was supposed to mean in Edward Herbert of Cherbury’s De Veritate. Famously, the ancient stoics had divergent views regarding this question, hence early modern reconstructions of the concept could be based on different sources (and, consequently, could have different significations). My aim is to prove that the Herbertian sense follows that of Justus Lipsius. Keeping in mind that Herbert’s epistemology involved soteriological considerations as well, all this can not be regarded as a mere philological nuance, since although scholars tend to focus solely on the epistemological content of the work the whole project outlined in the De Veritate is grounded on the distinction between fate and providence.

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