The Stoic conversion as a movement of the soul and the philosophical paideia as a form of conversion

Abstract

Ancient Stoa conceived philosophical education as a process which led from vice to virtue. Conversion, on the contrary, cannot be explained as an ongoing process, since it emerges abruptly. This article intends to analyse some terminological and conceptual difficulties involving the concept of conversion understood as psychological change. We will suggest the possible links that might be established between this notion and the sphere of philosophical education and we will provide an interpretation of paideia as a form of conversion.