The works of Epictetus - 1912 Author:Epictetus Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: THE DISCOURSES OF EPICTETUS. BOOK I. CHAPTER I. OF THE THINGS WHICH ARE, AND THE THINGS WHICH ARE NOT IN OUR OWN POWER. OF human faculties in general... more », you will find that each is unable to contemplate itself, and therefore to approve or disapprove itself. How far does the proper sphere of grammar extend ? As far as the judging of language. Of music? As far as the judging of melody. Does either of them contemplate itself, then ? By no means. Thus, for instance, when you are to write to your friend, grammar will tell you what to write; but whether you are to write to your friend at all, or no, grammar will not tell you. Thus music, with regard to tunes; but whether it be proper or improper, at any particular time, to sing or play, music will not tell you. What will tell, then ? That faculty which contemplates both itself and all other things. And what is that? The Reasoning Faculty; for that alone is found able to place an estimate upon itself, — what it is, what are its powers, what its value and likewise all the rest. For what is it else that says, gold is beautiful ? since the gold itself does not speak. Evidently, that faculty which judges of the appearances of things.1 What else distinguishes music, grammar, the other faculties, proves their uses, and shows their proper occasions ? Nothing but this. As it was fit, then, this most excellent and superior faculty alone, a right use of the appearances of things, the gods have placed in our own power ; but all other matters they have not placed in our power. What, was it because they would not ? I rather think that, if they could, they had granted us these too; but they 1 The word (Qavrcuricu) here translated " the appearances of things," will sometimes be found rendered, in other passages, " the p...« less