ἔρωτα παύει λιμός. εἰ δὲ μή, χρόνος· ἐὰν δὲ τούτοις μὴ δύνῃ χρῆσθαι, βρόχος. —Crates (Cynic philosopher)
Hunger puts a stop to erōs. If not, time does. But, if you can’t use these, a noose works. Lucian of Samosata born around AD 125 died after AD 180 (mentions death of Marcus Aurelius)
Sophist
and Satirist Second Sophistic
begins some time in late 1st century BC?
flourishes from Nero’s reign (mid 1st AD) until mid 3rd century new (Roman) funding + prestige of Greek ironic, self-aware, campy reaction to kitschy imitation
mixes philosophy and school-rhetoric
revives/fetishizes Attic dialect of Greek from 400-700 years before but in new sociopolitical climate (Some) 2nd Sophistic Genres
lives (encomia turned into biography)
collections of chreiæ or sayings
collections of memorable acts
epistles (letters) and collections of epistles
dreams and dream-interpretation
Menippean satire
“novel” (whatever that is) Pythagoras weird culty mathy stuff Democritus Atomism Plato Academy Diogenes Aristotle Cynics (Dogs) Peripatetics Zeno Stoic (Porch) Epicurus Garden family tree Skeptics of major later Pyrrhonists philosophies Neoplatonists Stoics believe cosmos = god = nature; soul = part of god/cosmos trying to figure itself out seek public life, contribute to public good physics (study of nature) + logic = ethics avoid emotions/passions; embrace reason; act, don’t be acted upon—you control yourself good = knowledge of truth/nature; evil = ignorance Epicureans avoid pain—seek ataraxia (untroubled peace) reject false pleasures leading to pain enjoy moderation in pleasures avoid war and public life; live privately at peace gods have ataraxia—not involved in the world varying opinions on determinism/free will Cynic Virtues
αὐτάρκεια autárkeia — self-sufficiency, independence
ἄσκησις áskēsis — training, practice in austerity
ἀναίδεια anaídeia — shamelessness, indifference
παρρησία parrhēsía — frankness, freedom of speech
κοσμοπολίτης cosmopolítēs — citizen of the world Cynic Memes dogs, especially rabid dogs smoke, ashes — what’s left after purification by fire thus Heracles: body burned away in apotheosis equipment: double cloak, pēra (purse), stick food: beans, lupins, legumes cosmopolitanism (=citizenship of world) and travel Cynics
Antisthenes of Athens — student of Socrates
Diogenes of Sinope — student of Antisthenes
Crates of Thebes — student of Diogenes
Hipparchia of Maroneia — wife of Crates
Menippus of Gadara — invented Menippean satire
Πήρη τις πόλις ἐστὶ μέσῳ ἐνὶ οἴνοπι τύφῳ, καλὴ καὶ πίειρα, περίρρυπος, οὐδὲν ἔχουσα, εἰς ἣν οὔτε τις εἰσπλεῖ ἀνὴρ μωρὸς παράσιτος, οὔτε λίχνος πόρνης ἐπαγαλλόμενος πυγῇσιν· ἀλλὰ θύμον καὶ σκόρδα φέρει καὶ σῦκα καὶ ἄρτους, ἐξ ὧν οὐ πολεμοῦσι πρὸς ἀλλήλους περὶ τούτων, οὐχ ὅπλα κέκτηνται περὶ κέρματος, οὐ περὶ δόξης. —Crates (in Diogenes Laertius Lives 6.85)
There is a city, Bag, in the midst of the wine-dark smoke, beautiful and rich, poor all-around, having nothing. To it sails no fool parasite, no connoisseur of whores, glorying in ass; instead it bears thyme and garlic and figs and bread, which never made anyone wage war against his fellow man, nor take up arms for money or glory. Hermotimus or, On Philosophical Schools Central Questions
What is the best philosophic school? How can you choose the best without first learning all the philosophies?
Are any of the philosophers not hypocrites?
False Premises: one can finish learning philosophy one can attain happiness by finishing philosophy Misunderstood Quotation
βραχὺς μὲν ὁ βίος, μακρὴ δὲ ἡ τέχνη Hippocrates
the life is short, the art is long
vitam brevem esse, longam artem (Seneca Dialogi 10.1.2) =ars longa, vita brevis Hermotimus Hermotimus has a book. He takes notes.
Hermotimus is 60 years old, has studied Stoicism for 20 years, has not yet achieved virtue and perfect happiness
How long will it take Hermotimus to learn philosophy?
What do H’s professors say are the benefits of philosophy?
Do H’s professors seem to possess those benefits? Hermotimus
How many philosophies are there?
Which is the true philosophy?
Why did H. choose to follow the Stoics?
How many philosophers are Stoics?
How do you know Epicureans want pleasure, Peripatetics are avaricious and argumentative, Platonists are arrogant and vainglorious?
Appearance? Like statues? How can a blind man choose? Hermotimus
Appearances deceive: virtues are internal, not external.
Metaphor of Virtue as a City (cf. Plato Republic) no natives in Virtue: all are immigrants we should leave our city and seek the city of Virtue many paths to city who is to guide us?
“As for Ethiopians and Gelo’s wife— why did you have to bring her from Syracuse into the argument?” Hermotimus
Metaphor of Sacrilege a bowl is stolen from a temple: how to discover the culprit?
What if there is a large crowd? What if you don’t know what was stolen but everybody has an item? Hermotimus
Metaphor of the Lots contestants draw lots to determine tournament bracket: how to figure out who has the bye?
Is there a shortcut? E of 9? What if the letters are random? What if they aren’t letters but hieroglyphs? What if they aren’t hieroglyphs but pictures? Hermotimus
What if we try all the philosophies?
How long does it take to learn one? Twenty years? How long does it take to learn all of them?
Is there a shortcut?
Metaphor of the Wine Merchants Metaphor of the Wheat, Beans, Barley, Lentils, and Chick-Peas Metaphor of the Poison (Hemlock or Aconite) Hermotimus
What if none of the philosophers is right? How would we know? What is the faculty of judgment?
What if we had a judge of logic who could determine which philosophers were speaking logically?
How would you know the judge is logical?
argumentum ad infinitum — infinite regress Hermotimus
Cause of distress: invented a dream and decided to pursue it without checking to see if it was attainable
Dream: to achieve virtue/happiness through study
Implication: perfect virtue/perfect happiness is not attainable through study Statement of Method Sections 73–74 (pp. 122–123)
superfluous details distract the reader from skepticism of a false premise
storyteller describes beautiful woman poet describes man with three heads and six hands 2 × 5 = 7 ∴ 4 × 5 = 14 geometry is a lie: points are divisible, lines have width
wait, you fell for that last one? “You’ll do better for the future by resolving to share our ordinary life. Play your part in the affairs of the city along with many of your fellow-citizens, and give up bizarre and extravagant expectations.” Practicing political virtue…isn’t that what Stoics teach?
φιλοσόφῳ δὲ εἰς τὸ λοιπὸν κἂν ἄκων ποτὲ ὁδῷ βαδίζων ἐντύχω, οὕτως ἐκτραπήσομαι καὶ περιστήσομαι ὥσπερ τοὺς λυττῶντας τῶν κυνῶν.
“And if I ever again even unintentionally meet a philosopher as I’m walking on the road, I’ll turn round and avoid him like a mad dog.” Demonax Vita, Chreia
Vita (life): like an encomium
Chreia (saying in context):
Πάλιν δὲ τοῦ Ξέρξου γράψαντος «πέμψον τὰ ὅπλα,» ἀντέγραψε «μολὼν λαβέ.» Plutarch Apophthegmata Laconica 225C.12
Again, when Xerxes sent a message, “Hand over your arms,” [Leonides] sent back, “Come and take them.” Outline Epistolary Introduction
Origin (Cypriot family of wealth and rank)
Education: eclectic philosophy, Platonic/Cynic
Deeds: help to others (fortune) gentle disposition due to philosophy (soul)
Collection of chreiæ: main illustration of character
Death DEMONAX disreputable he would not remain silent to the uninitiate, but discourage them from the rites; and if they were good he would tell the world about them out of general benevolence. The result was that the Athenians, who already had stones in their hands to throw at him, at once became mollified and well-disposed to him, and from that time showed him honour, respect, and eventually admiration. And yet he had started his speechChreiæ to them with a fairly bitter preamble: ‘Men of Athens, you see me ready garlanded: sacrifice me too, for your former victim* brought you no good omens.’ I want to quote some of his witty and well-aimed quips, and I 12 might as well start with Favorinus* and what he said to him. When someone told Favorinus that Demonax was poking fun at his lectures and particularly at their violently broken rhythms, saying that they were vulgar, effeminate, and quite inappropriate to philosophy, he went to Demonax and asked him, ‘Who are you to jeer at my lectures?’ Demonax replied, ‘A man with ears that are not easily fooled.’ The sophist persisted and asked him, ‘What equipment did your boyhood education give you to take up philosophy?’ ‘Balls’, replied Demonax. On another occasion the same man went and asked Demonax 13 which philosophical creed he most supported. He replied, ‘Why, who told you I’m a philosopher?’, and walked away laughing heartily. Favorinus then asked him what he was laughing at, to which he replied, ‘I do find it funny that you think men are philosophers if they have beards, when you don’t have one yourself.’ When the sophist from Sidon,* who was popular in Athens, was 14 boasting that he was familiar with the whole range of philosophy–– but it’s better to quote his actual words: ‘If Aristotle summons me to the Lyceum, I shall attend him; if Plato asks me to the Academy, I shall go; if Zeno calls, I shall spend time in the Stoa; if Pythagoras summons, I shall keep silence.’* So Demonax stood up in the middle of the audience and said, ‘I say’, (addressing him by name), ‘Pythagoras summons you.’ When a certain Python, a pretty young fellow, who came from one 15 of the grand families in Macedonia, was quizzing him by putting forward a trick question and asking for a logical solution, he replied, ‘I know one thing, my boy, the conclusion requires penetration–– like you.’ The lad was furious at the double-edged jibe, and said threateningly, ‘I’ll soon show you what a man is.’ Demonax laughed and asked him, ‘Oh, you have a man, have you?’ 155 DEMONAX disreputable he would not remain silent to the uninitiate, but discourage them from the rites; and if they were good he would tell the world about them out of general benevolence. The result was that the Athenians, who already had stones in their hands to throw at him, at once became mollified and well-disposed to him, and from that time showed him honour, respect, and eventually admiration. And yet he had started his speech to them with a fairly bitter preamble: ‘Men of Athens, you see me ready garlanded: sacrifice me too, for your former victim* brought you no good omens.’ I want to quote some of his witty and well-aimed quips, and I 12 might as well start with Favorinus* and what he said to him. When someone told Favorinus that Demonax was poking fun at his lectures and particularly at their violently broken rhythms, saying that they were vulgar, effeminate, and quite inappropriate to philosophy, he went to Demonax and asked him, ‘Who are you to jeer at my lectures?’ Demonax replied, ‘A man with ears that are not easily fooled.’ The sophist persisted and asked him, ‘What equipment did your boyhood education give you to take up philosophy?’ ‘Balls’, replied Demonax. On another occasion the same man went and asked Demonax 13 which philosophical creed he most supported. He replied, ‘Why, who told you I’m a philosopher?’, and walked away laughing heartily. Favorinus then asked him what he was laughing at, to which he replied, ‘I do find it funnyChreiæ that you think men are philosophers if they have beards, when you don’t have one yourself.’ When the sophist from Sidon,* who was popular in Athens, was 14 boasting that he was familiar with the whole range of philosophy–– but it’s better to quote his actual words: ‘If Aristotle summons me to the Lyceum, I shall attend him; if Plato asks me to the Academy, I shall go; if Zeno calls, I shall spend time in the Stoa; if Pythagoras summons, I shall keep silence.’* So Demonax stood up in the middle of the audience and said, ‘I say’, (addressing him by name), ‘Pythagoras summons you.’ When a certain Python, a pretty young fellow, who came from one 15 of the grand families in Macedonia, was quizzing him by putting forward a trick question and asking for a logical solution, he replied, ‘I know one thing, my boy, the conclusion requires penetration–– like you.’ The lad was furious at the double-edged jibe, and said threateningly, ‘I’ll soon show you what a man is.’ Demonax laughed and asked him, ‘Oh, you have a man, have you?’ 155 DEMONAX 32 When someone asked him if he thought the soul was immortal, he replied, ‘Yes––in the sense that everything else is.’ 33 Regarding Herodes he remarked that Plato was right in saying that we have more than one soul; for a man with a single soul would not lay dining places for Regilla* and Polydeuces as if they were still living, and also compose the sort of declamations he did. 34 On one occasion when he had heard the proclamation announcing the Mysteries, he was bold enough to ask the Athenians publicly why they excluded foreigners, especially as the founder of their rites, Eumolpus,* was a foreigner and a Thracian. 35 On another occasion he was about to make a sea voyage in winter, and one of his friends asked him, ‘Aren’t you afraid that the boat may capsize and you’ll be food for the fishes?’ His reply was, ‘I would be ungrateful if I grudged the fishes eating me, when I’ve eaten so many of them.’ 36 He advised an orator who had delivered an appalling declamation to practise and exercise; and when he replied, ‘I am always reciting to myself’, Demonax told him, ‘Then it’s no wonder your speech is like that, if you have a fool for a listener.’ 37 Again, he once saw a soothsayer giving prophecies in public for money, and said to him, ‘I don’t see on what ground you ask for money. If you believe you can alter destiny at all, whatever you charge is too little; but if everything is decreed by god, what is the point of your soothsaying?’ Chreiæ 38 When an elderly but powerfully built Roman gave him an exhibition of armed combat against a post, and asked him, ‘What do you think of my fighting skills, Demonax?’, he replied, ‘Excellent–– provided you have an opponent made of wood.’ 39 And see what shrewd replies he had ready in answer to trick ques- tions. When someone asked him mockingly, ‘If I burnt a thousand pounds of wood, Demonax, how many pounds of smoke would that come to?’, he replied, ‘Weigh the ashes, and all the rest will be smoke.’ 40 There was a certain Polybius,* completely uneducated and ill- spoken, who said, ‘The emperor has honoured me with Roman citizenship.’ To which Demonax responded, ‘If only he’d made you a Greek rather than a Roman.’ 41 When he saw a grandee priding himself on the width of his purple band, he took hold of the garment, and pointing it out to him whispered in his ear, ‘Don’t forget, a sheep wore this before you––and stayed a sheep.’ 158 Statement of Method
Ταῦτα ὀλίγα πάνυ ἐκ πολλῶν ἀπεμνημόνευσα, καὶ ἔστιν ἀπὸ τούτων τοῖς ἀναγινώσκουσι λογίζεσθαι ὁποῖος ἐκεῖνος ἀνὴρ ἐγένετο.
These are just a few of the things I could have mentioned, but they can give my readers a clear idea of the sort of man he was. The Dream or, Lucian’s Career Outline
Childhood: good with making wax animals
Attempt at sculpture; failure; beating
Dream
- Choice between Sculpture and Culture
Report of Dream
- boring to others, but it had a point Xenophon’s dream Xenophon Anabasis 3.1.12
Now when the time of perplexity came, he was distressed as well as everybody else and was unable to sleep; but, getting at length a little sleep, he had a dream. It seemed to him that there was a clap of thunder and a bolt fell on his father's house, setting the whole house ablaze. He awoke at once in great fear… Heracles’ Choice by Prodicus of Ceos; in Xenophon Memorabilia 2.1.21–34
fair to behold plump, soft free by nature impudent eyes
pure body, modest eyes, paler and more blushing, self-controlled in appearance straighter than is natural
ἡ δι᾽ ἀρετῆς ὁδός ἡ διὰ κακίας ὁδός the path through virtue the path through vice
truer beauty and good shortest path, no work, but much hard toil every pleasure Virtue Heracles Vice Lucian’s Choice
Ἑρμογλυφική τέχνη Παιδεία Sculpture Culture
hard-working, manly, fair of face, beautiful of dress covered in dust and appearance
wealth, power, no hard work, free from envy, never travels enemies fear and envy you
learn virtues of the soul, love beauty, gain knowledge
much travel, recognized everywhere, immortal fame The Death of Peregrinus Genre
vita (biography)
epistle (letter)
Addressee: Κρόνιος = Cronius
Is Cronius a Platonist? a Pythagorean? Or is this a translation of “Saturn”: Saturnalia?
Saturnalia: late December holiday featuring inversion slaves become masters, jokes, etc. important for satirists; Lucian writes a Saturnalia Epistolary introduction
Narrative framework: Theagenes the Cynic ranting syncrisis: Proteus (Peregrinus) and Zeus anonymous narrator: life of Peregrinus
Lucianic narrator: death of Peregrinus coda: Alexander’s story about Peregrinus ill Anonymous Narrator caught in adultery (radish!), seduced boy, killed father cf. St. Aristides Apologia (AD 125) found Christians and deceived them arrested and released: too eager for death (not worth it) lived with Christians until ate forbidden food went to Egypt, practiced ἄσκησις and ἀναίδεια went to Rome, kicked out of Rome went to Greece, incited rebellion, offended locals, almost killed, eventually delivers encomium reversing offense Anonymous Narrator needed more attention: proclaimed own death to be like a tragic performance (or Heracles), almost in theater itself at Olympic festival philosophically unsound act undertaken for attention, not benefit of man might encourage the wicked to despise death not a thing to be emulated by children bad imitation of Indian gymnosophists might back out at the last minute
Peregrinus’ followers (Cynics) should follow him Lucianic Narrator gave long speech about life, dangers, philosophy promised to kill self, to despise death like Heracles stupid people: “Save yourself for the Greeks!” others:
several days after the festival, 2¼ miles away jumps into the fire Epistolary Interruption
Αὖθις ὁρῶ γελῶντά σε, ὦ καλὲ Κρόνιε, τὴν καταστροφὴν τοῦ δράματος.
Again I see you laughing, my good Cronius, at the climax (catastrophe) of the drama.
He even called on the spirit of his father… Lucianic Narrator
Cynics attending death threaten Lucian; he threatens to throw them in the fire.
Love of glory: the ἔρως that admirable men cannot escape
Lucian’s tales of the account: - for the wise, an unadorned account - for fools, marvelous details added details quickly repeated, become tradition Comparison/Contrast
Compare and contrast The Dream, or Lucian’s Career and The Death of Peregrinus
Is it right to seek glory and fame? Comparison/Contrast
Compare and contrast Demonax and The Death of Peregrinus
What makes for a good Cynic? What makes for a bad Cynic? Alexander or The False Prophet Glycōn Glycōn-Chnobis
Abraxas Apollonius of Tyana Genre
vita (biography)
epistle (letter)
Addressee: Celsus the Epicurean
What do Epicureans believe about the divine? Outline Epistolary Introduction
Description: physical, mental
Youth: lover (quack, followed Apollonius of Tyre) joined up with Cocconas the chorus-writer
Creation of Glycon cult Alexander’s deeds as head of Glycon cult chreiæ: false prophecies
Death: gangrene and maggots
Epistolary close: praise of Epicurus Hope and Fear
[Alexander and Cocconas] easily perceived that human life is at the mercy of the two great tyrannies of hope and fear, and that anyone who could exploit both of them would very quickly get rich.
Why do people visit oracles like Delphi? Glycon Cult
long Greek history with tame snakes: Olympias, mother of Alexander the Great of Macedon
buried bronze tablets at temple of Apollo in Chalcedon announcing the coming of Asclepius Cocconas dies — bitten by snake enter Alexander, dressed in purple and carrying a sword feigns foaming at mouth; makes snake-head-puppet
hides and discovers egg containing snake soon brings out larger snake and fake snake-head Oracles charges fee (1d. 2o.) per oracle makes profit on volume (70,000 to 80,000 oracles per year)
petitioners give questions on sealed scrolls Alexander opens scrolls secretly, reads questions writes answers on outside of scrolls seals and returns scrolls
oracles revised after the fact Lucian tries deceiving the oracle with Aramaic Σαβαρδαλαχου μαλαχααττηαλος ἦν Relations with Others
hated by Christians around Pontus (25)
hates and hated by Epicureans burns Epicurus’ Basic Doctrines Romans okay with him — seems helpful, and Romans are deeply superstitous Rutilianus is in his pocket protected by Roman governors attempts to assassinate Lucian Analysis
How does Alexander lie? Is it like or unlike Lucian’s method of deception?
Is Lucian lying? Is this story real?
Is this a vituperation of the Glycon cult or a praise of Epicurean (and Lucian’s) philosophy?
Where did all the dogs go?
What do we learn from the story? What is its moral?