← Glossary

Prohairesis

The moral faculty of choice or free will; the rational capacity for deliberate decision-making that alone lies within our power.

Prohairesis is not merely the ability to choose between options, but the fundamental human capacity for ethical self-determination. It is the core of what is 'our own doing' — the only thing for which we are fully responsible. Epictetus places prohairesis above all external goods; a person with an intact prohairesis remains free, even in bondage. It is therefore the foundation of Stoic freedom and dignity.