What should a man have ready in such circumstances? This: what is mine and what is not, what is permitted and what is not. I must die. Must I die lamenting? I must be chained. Must I lament that too?

What this means

Epictetus is rehearsing the worst in advance, not to be morbid but to disarm it. Death and chains come for the body regardless; the only open question is whether you also hand them your peace by lamenting. Strip the complaint away and what remains is simply the fact, which a person can meet upright.