James B. Stockdale (1923–2005)

A former Vietnam War POW and his wife recount their life together and their separate agonies during his imprisonment.
"This is the true story of Jim Stockdale, a navy fighter pilot shot down and taken prisoner during the Vietnam War; and his wife, Sybil, who, back home in California, carried on a valiant fight on behalf of her husband and all other POWs during the eight years of his imprisonment. Vice Admiral Stockdale entered the fray as a commander in 1964, when the American commitment totaled about 16,00o men, and left it in 1973, when the number was about the same. In between, however, our commitment had shot up to over thirty times that number. The truth about the Tonkin Gulf incidents--and how they precipitated our huge investment of treasure and blood--is a story Jim Stockdale has protected for twenty years, almost eight of them at great risk in a Communist prison. Sybil and Jim tell their story in alternating chapters--Jim recounting his experiences in prison during those years; Sybil telling of her struggle to get the U.S. government to acknowledge the inhumane treatment of POWs in North Vietnam and to enforce the terms of the Geneva Convention--all the while raising four sons on her own. ... It will likely contain some surprises for American readers, but nothing is revealed here that is not already known by the North Vietnamese government."--Prologue.… (mais)

This is an essay rather than a book, but it is a gem in terms of testing Stoicism in a real-life hardship situation. There are moral and political elements of the times best ignored, but from the standpoint of an individual facing severe externals outside one's control, including the actions of others and one's own body, the application of Epictetus' doctrine appears to have worked rather well for Stockdale. I am relieved that I do not have to endure Stockdale's experience to test Stoicism, but I am grateful that he wrote this essay so that I may learn from his experiences. I can relate to his "slow movin' cagey prisoner" tactic and the explanation of "Stoic Harm": (Epictetus:) "Look not for any greater harm than this: destroying the trustworthy, self-respecting well-behaved man within you". The note passed in the North Vietnamese prison was a fitting conclusion, quoting Ernest Henley's Invictus: "I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul". The essence of the essay is summed up neatly by Stockdale: "If Epictetus' lecture room was a hospital, my prison was a laboratory". A useful book for those interested in practising Stoic philosophy.… (mais)

I was happy to discover Stockdale: a modern Stoic! I guess I expected a modern version of Marcus Aurelius and Epictetus. He isn't. Admittedly, this isn't intended to be an overview of modern Stoic philosophy (is there is such a thing?). Nor is it intended to be a guide to everyday life: Stockdale writes about war.

As a guide to war... having no experience with such, I'm completely unqualified to judge it. But it did seem to me that his perceptions were somewhat warped; that he might, for example, have a hard time distinguishing between someone who is manipulative and someone who is simply trying to put their best foot forward, for example.

It was interesting and insightful, but required too many pinches of salt to make it much of a guide to anything.… (mais)