What is essential Stoic core? I want to get into stoicism but

Epictetus. OWC have an edition containing his discourses, fragments, and the Handbook. It's cheap (~10 bucks), short (~350 pages), and covers all Stoic principles in comfy Socratic-like dialogues. It's pretty much the go-to book.

Read Seneca* after that if you want hundreds of pages more about the same principles, but written much more beautifully. Arian wrote Epictetus' words in a plain style, basically for the average Joe listening to him.

*Seneca is also better at writing about death and brevity of life, if you ask me. I find that he influences the way I think about it more than Epictetus does, but that could be because of his style.

File: epicuckious.jpg (33KB, 313x424px) Image search: [Google]

33KB, 313x424px

>>9891011
This website should be the perfect place for you

>>9891091
There is a Reddit page for everything, though. Should we stop talking about all philosophical schools and all authors just because of that? What a bad idea.

File: 19029574_1481987778534198_8609398979507142164_n.jpg (14KB, 300x250px) Image search: [Google]

14KB, 300x250px

>>9891099
>Should we stop talking about all philosophical schools and all authors just because of that?

Unironically, yes

>>9891079
I found the Enchiridion to be more profound and a better introduction to the ideas of Stoicism, but Seneca was a better writer and taught me how to apply these principles in real life.

Seneca's writings on death are absolutely beautiful and helped me cope with it.