What is the lamp of Diogenes?
Diogenes (412?-323 BCE) of Sinope was an ancient Greek philosopher who rejected the hollow values he saw in Athenian society. One sign of that integrity was his practice of carrying a lantern around Athens in the daytime as he looked for an honest man.
Did Diogenes pluck a chicken?
Plato liked to 'interpret' Socrates, and on one occasion spoke of his definition of man as a “featherless biped”. Allegedly, Diogenes plucked a chicken and brought it into Plato's Academy, saying, “Behold! I've brought you a man.”
Why did Diogenes throw away his bowl?
Diogenes di Sinope (413-323 B.C.), an ascetic philosopher of Athens and Corinth, is said to have eschewed worldly goods to such an extent that he threw away his drinking bowl upon seeing a youth drinking water from cupped hands.
Who was the craziest philosopher?
Immanuel Kant Kant was one of the most brilliant human beings of all time. His ideas have influenced nearly all subsequent philosophy and are also influential in science. His eccentricity was all the opposites of other thinkers on this list.
Did Diogenes wear clothes?
He had a reputation for sleeping and eating wherever he chose in a highly non-traditional fashion, and took to toughening himself against nature. He declared himself a cosmopolitan and a citizen of the world rather than claiming allegiance to just one place.
Did Diogenes find an honest man?
Yes, Diogenes lit a lantern in broad daylight, but he did not say he was looking for an honest man. What he said was, "I am looking for [or 'seeking'] human being" — anthrôpon zeto — either a human being or the human being, either an exemplar of humanity or the idea of humanity, or both.
Was Diogenes actually smart?
Unassumingly, Diogenes was a very smart man, having a sharp mind that can (and does) challenge and roast the most pompous of scholars and philosophers. He was critical of his philosopher peers, mainly Plato (Socrates' student).
Who carried a lantern looking for an honest man?
Diogenes of SinopeDiogenes of Sinope (l. c. 404-323 BCE) was a Greek Cynic philosopher best known for holding a lantern (or candle) to the faces of the citizens of Athens claiming he was searching for an honest man.
Did Diogenes live in a barrel?
Diogenes was the antisocial, ascetic philosopher who lived in a barrel and rejected all of the norms of civilized behavior. He is usually portrayed as almost naked and unkempt, with long hair and a beard.
What weird things did Diogenes do?
He did some really gross things in public Diogenes carried a lamp around the Athens in broad daylight. When asked why he was carrying a lamp during the day, he said that he was looking for an honest man, but found only frauds and hypocrites.
Who is the coolest philosopher?
Major Philosophers and Their IdeasSaint Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) ... Aristotle (384–322 BCE) ... Confucius (551–479 BCE) ... René Descartes (1596–1650) ... Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 82) ... Michel Foucault (1926-1984) ... David Hume (1711–77) ... Immanuel Kant (1724–1804)More items...•
Who is the most intelligent philosopher?
Top 10 PhilosophersAristotle. Aristotle, one of the most famous Greek philosophers, was also a polymath who lived in Ancient Greece in 384-322 BC. ... Lao-Tzu. ... John Locke. ... Karl Marx. ... Confucius. ... Ralph Waldo Emerson. ... Immanuel Kant. ... Epicurus.More items...
Who painted Diogenes as an old man with his lamp?
Diogenes as an old man, with his lamp. Painting by Johann Tischbein.
What creature was Diogenes more associated with?
The creature he was more associated with was the dog, originally as an insult for his uncivilised way of life. One time while he was eating food in the market (a serious social faux pas), onlookers gathered around and shouted “Dog!” at him. Diogenes replied:
What was Diogenes' influence on Zeno?
This influence was magnified when Zeno of Citium developed the philosophy of Stoicism the following century , a philosophy based strongly on Cynicism.
What is Diogenes famous for?
He was most famous for a more tasteful eccentricity. He would carry a lit lantern with him as he walked around the city during the day, and if asked why, would declare that he was fruitlessly searching for an honest man (or in some versions, for a “real person”). Diogenes in his tub, a 1902 painting.
What did Diogenes tell the man about dressing up?
Diogenes told the man that if he was dressing up to impress other men he was a fool, and if it was to impress women he was a knave. Diogenes himself made no secret that he dealt with his own sexual impulses through masturbation.
How long ago was Diogenes born?
Diogenes was born over twenty-four hundred years ago , which is more of a problem than historians like to admit. People didn’t keep great records back then, of course, and not much was written down. Of what was, little has survived to this day. Mostly we wind up relying on ancient (to us) but more recent writings, which we have to hope were based on reliable lost sources. One pitfall there though is that we lose the context of their original source – whether it was a hostile biography or fawning praise, we just don’t know. And worse is that in many cases (especially with a figure as iconic as Diogenes became), they swiftly get co-opted as symbols for whatever the later author wishes to write about. The truth becomes buried. So if the following seems somewhat far-fetched and occasionally overly dramatic, know that there’s a reason.
What was Diogenes' slave's name?
Diogenes arrived in Athens, according to legend, with a single slave named Manes. However this slave took advantage of the arrival to escape his master. Diogenes didn’t report this, as he is supposed to have said:
What did Diocles give Diogenes?
But Diocles tells this story in the following manner; that when some one said to him, "Give me a commission, Diogenes," he carried him off, and gave him a halfpenny worth of cheese to carry. And as he refused to carry it, "See," said Diogenes, "a halfpenny worth of cheese has broken off our friendship.".
What did Diogenes believe?
Like Antisthenes, Diogenes believed in self-control, the importance of personal excellence in one's behavior (in Greek, arete, usually translated as "virtue"), and the rejection of all that was considered unnecessary in life such as personal possessions and social status.
What did Diogenes teach the boys?
And the boys retained in their memory many sentences of poets and prose writers, and of Diogenes himself; and he used to give them a concise statement of everything in order to strengthen their memory; and at home he used to teach them to wait upon themselves, contenting themselves with plain food, and drinking water.
Where did the story of the life of the philosophers come from?
Much of what is known about his life in Athens and Corinth comes from the work The Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers by Diogenes Laertius (3rd century CE). Some of the most amusing anecdotes are those relating his continual feud with Plato whom he considered a pretentious, prattling, snob.
What did Plato say about a dog?
When Plato called him a dog, he said, "Undoubtedly, for I have come back to those who sold me.". Plato defined man thus: "Man is a two-footed, featherless animal;" and was much praised for the definition; so Diogenes plucked a cock and brought it into his school, and said, "This is Plato's man.".
What does Hermippus say about the sale of Diogenes?
Hermippus, in his Sale of Diogenes, says that he was taken prisoner and put up to be sold, and asked what he could do; and he answered, "Govern men.". And so he bade the crier "give notice that if any one wants to purchase a master, there is one here for him.".
Who was the Greek philosopher who held a lantern to the faces of the citizens of Athens?
X. Diogenes of Sinope (c. 404-323 BCE) was a Greek Cynic philosopher best known for holding a lantern to the faces of the citizens of Athens claiming he was searching for an honest man. He was most likely a student of the philosopher Antisthenes (445-365 BCE) and, in the words of Plato (allegedly), was “A Socrates gone mad.”.
Who was Diogenes?
320 bce, probably at Corinth, Greece), archetype of the Cynics, a Greek philosophical sect that stressed stoic self-sufficiency and the rejection of luxury.
What are some of Diogenes' lost writings?
Among Diogenes’ lost writings are dialogues, plays, and the Republic, which described an anarchist utopia in which men lived “natural” lives. The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica This article was most recently revised and updated by Adam Augustyn, Managing Editor, Reference Content.
What was Diogenes' philosophy?
It was by personal example rather than any coherent system of thought that Diogenes conveyed the Cynic philosophy. His followers positioned themselves as watchdogs of morality. Diogenes is the subject of numerous apocryphal stories, one of which depicts his behaviour upon being sold into slavery.
Who was the founder of the Cynics?
Western philosophy: Socrates. The latter, through his disciple Diogenes of Sinope (died c. 320 bce ), who carried voluntary poverty to the extreme and emphasized freedom from all conventions, became the founder of the sect of the Cynics.
Overview
Diogenes , also known as Diogenes the Cynic (Διογένης ὁ Κυνικός, Diogénēs ho Kynikós), was a Greek philosopher and one of the founders of Cynic philosophy. He was born in Sinope, an Ionian colony on the Black Sea coast of Anatolia (Asia Minor ) in 412 or 404 BC and died at Corinth in 323 BC.
Diogenes was a controversial figure. He was the son of a mintmaster and was banished from Sin…
Life
Nothing is known about Diogenes's early life except that his father, Hicesias, was a banker. It seems likely that Diogenes was also enrolled into the banking business aiding his father.
At some point (the exact date is unknown), Hicesias and Diogenes became involved in a scandal involving the adulteration or debasement of the currency, and Diogenes was exiled from the city and lost his citizenship and all his material possessions. This aspect of the story seems to be co…
Philosophy
Along with Antisthenes and Crates of Thebes, Diogenes is considered one of the founders of Cynicism. The ideas of Diogenes, like those of most other Cynics, must be arrived at indirectly. No writings of Diogenes survive even though he is reported to have authored over ten books, a volume of letters and seven tragedies. Cynic ideas are inseparable from Cynic practice; therefore what we know about Diogenes is contained in anecdotes concerning his life and sayings attribut…
Diogenes syndrome
Diogenes's name has been applied to a behavioural disorder characterised by apparently involuntary self-neglect and hoarding. The disorder afflicts the elderly and is quite inappropriately named, as Diogenes deliberately rejected common standards of material comfort, and was anything but a hoarder. The name itself is also often criticised as Diogenes believed he was helping himself.
Depictions
Both in ancient and in modern times, Diogenes's personality has appealed strongly to sculptors and to painters. Ancient busts exist in the museums of the Vatican, the Louvre, and the Capitol. The interview between Diogenes and Alexander is represented in an ancient marble bas-relief found in the Villa Albani.
Among artists who have painted the famous encounter of Diogenes with Alexander, there are w…
Sources
• Desmond, William D. 2008. Cynics. Acumen / University of California Press.
• Dudley, Donald R. (1937). A History of Cynicism from Diogenes to the 6th Century A.D. Cambridge.
• Laërtius, Diogenes; Plutarch (1979). Herakleitos & Diogenes. Translated by Guy Davenport. Bolinas, California: Grey Fox Press. ISBN 978-0-912516-36-3. (Contains 124 sayings of Diogenes)
Further reading
• Cutler, Ian (2005). Cynicism from Diogenes to Dilbert. Jefferson, Va.: McFarland & Company, Inc. ISBN 978-0-7864-2093-3.
• Mazella, David (2007). The making of modern cynicism. Charlottesville, Va.: University of Virginia Press. ISBN 978-0-8139-2615-5.
• Navia, Luis E. (1996). Classical cynicism : a critical study. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press. ISBN 978-0-313-30015-8.
External links
• "Diogenes of Sinope". Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy.
• Lives & Writings on the Cynics, directory of literary references to Ancient Cynics
• A day with Diogenes
• Diogenes The Dog from Millions of Mouths