Sept. 4, 2025
E13 Is Stoicism Making Us More Lonely?
Stoicism feels honest: it admits life is often unfair and painful. But when “calm acceptance” becomes a lifestyle, it quietly props up the very systems hurting us—and it supercharges loneliness. In this episode of The Loneliness Industry, we take on modern Stoicism, Western spiritualism, and the capitalist machine that turns emotional repression into a virtue.
What we cover
- Stoicism 101 (Zeno, Epictetus, Marcus Aurelius) and why “control yourself, accept the rest” slides into political apathy
- How calm detachment looks like avoidant attachment in dating & relationships (Bowlby, Ainsworth, Hazan & Shaver)
- Why Sara Ahmed says anger is a map, not a moral failure
- Nietzsche’s “zero tolerance” for Stoic emotional austerity (Apollonian vs Dionysian)
- Avoidant Attachment
- Jung’s shadow: what repression doesn’t erase, it returns—hard
Why Stoicism isn’t the antidote to Western spiritualism—it’s the other glove on the same hand
Practical alternatives: curiosity over cool, solidarity over “resilience,” mutual aid over self-blame
Chapters
00:00 Intro – the pay review “accept with dignity” script
03:10 Stoicism 101: control, reason vs emotion, virtue as the only good
12:45 Ahmed: anger as coordinates; dignity without dissent = complicity
19:30 Nietzsche: Apollonian vs Dionysian & life-denying calm
26:05 Stoicism → avoidant attachment in love & friendship
36:20 Jung’s shadow: the return of the repressed
42:10 What to do instead (connection vs compliance)
49:00 Conclusion & takeaways
If this helped you
Subscribe for more philosophy that names the system, not just your “mindset”
Rate/review the podcast (it really helps)
Support via:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/TheLonelinessIndustry
Bandcamp: https://jordanreyne.bandcamp.com/
Donations: www.thelonelinessindustry.net
Newsletter & episode notes:
www.thelonelinessindustry.net
Referenced thinkers & themes
Stoicism, Marcus Aurelius, Epictetus, Zeno of Citium, cognitive primacy vs affect-first (Ekman, LeDoux, Barrett), Sara Ahmed (The Promise of Happiness), Friedrich Nietzsche (Twilight of the Idols), John Bowlby & Mary Ainsworth (attachment theory), Hazan & Shaver, Carl Gustav Jung (shadow), Western spiritualism, capitalism & atomization, avoidant attachment, loneliness epidemic.
Trigger/content notes: workplace exploitation, relationship distress, depression, religious critique.
#Loneliness #Stoicism #marcusaurelius #Nietzsche #SaraAhmed #AttachmentTheory #AvoidantAttachment #Jung #WesternSpirituality #Capitalism #CBT #MentalHealth #PhilosophyPodcast #PoliticalApathy #EmotionalAusterity
What we cover
- Stoicism 101 (Zeno, Epictetus, Marcus Aurelius) and why “control yourself, accept the rest” slides into political apathy
- How calm detachment looks like avoidant attachment in dating & relationships (Bowlby, Ainsworth, Hazan & Shaver)
- Why Sara Ahmed says anger is a map, not a moral failure
- Nietzsche’s “zero tolerance” for Stoic emotional austerity (Apollonian vs Dionysian)
- Avoidant Attachment
- Jung’s shadow: what repression doesn’t erase, it returns—hard
Why Stoicism isn’t the antidote to Western spiritualism—it’s the other glove on the same hand
Practical alternatives: curiosity over cool, solidarity over “resilience,” mutual aid over self-blame
Chapters
00:00 Intro – the pay review “accept with dignity” script
03:10 Stoicism 101: control, reason vs emotion, virtue as the only good
12:45 Ahmed: anger as coordinates; dignity without dissent = complicity
19:30 Nietzsche: Apollonian vs Dionysian & life-denying calm
26:05 Stoicism → avoidant attachment in love & friendship
36:20 Jung’s shadow: the return of the repressed
42:10 What to do instead (connection vs compliance)
49:00 Conclusion & takeaways
If this helped you
Subscribe for more philosophy that names the system, not just your “mindset”
Rate/review the podcast (it really helps)
Support via:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/TheLonelinessIndustry
Bandcamp: https://jordanreyne.bandcamp.com/
Donations: www.thelonelinessindustry.net
Newsletter & episode notes:
www.thelonelinessindustry.net
Referenced thinkers & themes
Stoicism, Marcus Aurelius, Epictetus, Zeno of Citium, cognitive primacy vs affect-first (Ekman, LeDoux, Barrett), Sara Ahmed (The Promise of Happiness), Friedrich Nietzsche (Twilight of the Idols), John Bowlby & Mary Ainsworth (attachment theory), Hazan & Shaver, Carl Gustav Jung (shadow), Western spiritualism, capitalism & atomization, avoidant attachment, loneliness epidemic.
Trigger/content notes: workplace exploitation, relationship distress, depression, religious critique.
#Loneliness #Stoicism #marcusaurelius #Nietzsche #SaraAhmed #AttachmentTheory #AvoidantAttachment #Jung #WesternSpirituality #Capitalism #CBT #MentalHealth #PhilosophyPodcast #PoliticalApathy #EmotionalAusterity
