Social Voyeurism vs. Active Living: A Stoic Perspective
In 2022, during the PGA Championships, Tiger Woods found himself in a precarious position. His errant drive landed deep in the trees, necessitating a heroic punch shot to save par. As the legend prepared to take his swing, a sea of smartphones emerged from the crowd, each ready to capture the moment. Among the onlookers, one man stood apart.
Michelob Ultra in hand, this hero watched the scene unfold through his own eyes, fully fixed on the legend. The lone spectator epitomized what we’ve lost in the era of smartphones and social media.
Not only do spectators opt to watch others play rather than engage in the game themselves, but they predominantly do so through the lens of their phones, creating an additional barrier to authentic experience. This extends beyond mere passive observation—it’s a profound detachment from active participation in life. I call this phenomenon social voyeurism—a contemporary epidemic in which we prefer to experience life vicariously, forfeiting genuine living for digital façades.
Lessons from the Stoics
As an advisor to Emperor Nero and a prominent figure in the Stoic school of philosophy, Seneca emphasized virtue as the path to true happiness. He underscored the Stoic belief that we cannot control every aspect of life—script or scenery—but we can control how well we perform our roles. Seneca’s insight reminds us that we are not mere spectators; we are the actors meant to fully engage in the act of living.
Moreover, Seneca penned an entire letter on the Gladiator Games, declaring, “There is nothing so ruinous to good character as to idle away one’s time at some spectacle.” Even in ancient times, Seneca discerned the corrosive impact of passively consuming rather than pursuing meaningful endeavors.
Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius, another Stoic philosopher, observed, “In a little while, you will have forgotten everything; in a little while, everything will have forgotten you.” No amount of likes or comments can alter the inevitability of being forgotten. At the end of your life, will you regret not taking more pictures or videos? Will you wish you had spent more time posting or scrolling on social media? Or will you yearn for the moments you truly lived, unfiltered and unmediated by a screen?
Marcus Aurelius also wisely noted, “Even if you live three thousand — or thirty thousand — years, you should remember this: You cannot lose any other life than the one you are living now.” In our quest to capture and curate our lives, we can lose sight of the life unfolding before us. Aurelius reminds us that regardless of how long we live, the only life we truly possess is the one we are living right now. No amount of digital archiving or social media posts can substitute for real, lived experiences.
As you can see, even ancient philosophers struggled to live in the moment. They, too, were confronted with the distractions of their day, along with anxiety and worry. Despite living in an era devoid of our modern distractions, Seneca and Marcus Aurelius faced the same fundamental challenge we do today: how to live a life of meaning and presence.
Technology and Temperance
Today, the constant pull of social media and digital consumption exacerbates our detachment. Social voyeurism, where we passively observe rather than actively engage, is the modern manifestation of the age-old struggle to live in the moment. While Seneca and Aurelius contended with the distractions of their time, we grapple with screens and the pursuit of digital validation.
While it’s easy to demonize social media and modern technology, it’s crucial to recognize their potential. Social media platforms have revolutionized how we stay connected, allowing us to maintain relationships across vast distances and forge connections worldwide. The internet has shattered barriers to information and education, offering unprecedented access to knowledge. When used intentionally, these tools can profoundly enrich our lives.
The Stoic concept of temperance teaches us that the solution is not to condemn these tools but to use them wisely. The Stoics viewed external things, like technology, as indifferent — neither inherently good nor bad. What truly matters is how we relate to them and whether we use them in alignment with our values. Temperance, the virtue of self-control and moderation, can guide our relationship with social media and technology. It’s not about abstinence but about intentional engagement. We must use these tools deliberately, ensuring they serve our goals and enhance our well-being rather than control us.
By approaching social media with temperance, we can harness its benefits while mitigating its pitfalls and combating social voyeurism. This involves curating our feeds, setting boundaries around screen time, and balancing online engagement with offline experiences. It’s about using technology to increase wisdom and justice, two of the Stoic cardinal virtues. We must transition from being controlled by our screens to consciously deciding how they fit into our lives.
Embracing Active Living
We can’t control whether Tiger Woods hits an incredible shot from the trees or how many people like a video we took of the event, but we can control our actions. We can decide whether to live fully or merely perform a digital facsimile of life. We can build genuine relationships with our fellow human beings or retreat into a digital shell. Are we moving our bodies and engaging in life, or are we content to watch professional athletes move theirs? Are we seeking adventures or merely consuming bite-sized clips of others’ lives?
The choice is ours. We can reclaim our lives from the grip of social voyeurism by choosing to be present, participate, and truly live. The wisdom of the Stoics reminds us that our time is finite and the only life we have is the one we are living right now. Let us not squander it on passive observation but embrace it with the fullness of active, engaged living. The real world awaits.
