Diogenes twitter how to#

Diogenes, however, believed he was living a completely honest life and encouraging others to do the same.ĭiogenes, perhaps unsurprisingly, did not hesitate to insult his social superiors, including Plato and even Alexander the Great. Because of this rather unusual behavior, many labelled him as mentally ill, or a madman. In doing so, he confronted the people of Athens with their lifeless and shallow lives and encouraged them to wake up from the make-believe world they lived in and become fully aware of themselves. Diogenes walked around Athens, holding a lit lantern up to the face of everyone who passed him, claiming he was searching for an honest man or a true human being. If an act was not shameful in private, then it should not be shameful in public.Īnd that brings us to one of the most famous stories about this mad philosopher. These social norms, he believed, were completely artificial and had no real use in making someone a good person. When he was criticized for this, he pointed out that what he was doing was normal, and that everyone engaged in these activities, but hid in private what he did openly. He had no regard for social etiquette whatsoever and was known to frequently urinate and masturbate in public. Given this disdain for manners, Diogenes was known for his brutal honesty in conversation.

Can You Imagine a Taxation System Where the Wealthy Competed to Pay the Highest Taxes? It Really Happened!.

The Acropolis Of Athens: A Golden Age Legacy.Given the importance of the cynics to live according to their beliefs, it is not hard to imagine that a lot of the myths about Diogenes are in fact true. He believed that manners were simply lies used to hide the true nature of the individual. All of these things can be said with assurance, however, there are many rumors and legends about Diogenes that are hard to verify.ĭespite the fact that these myths are impossible to verify, they do line up with Diogenes own personal beliefs. He didn’t work either, instead, he chose to live off the charity of others. He had no possessions apart from a cup he used for eating and drinking, but he threw this away in disgust when he saw a boy drinking water from his hands and realized he didn’t even need a cup to sustain himself. (freshidea / Adobe Stock ) But Why was Diogenes Considered Mad?ĭiogenes didn’t have a house, instead, he lived in a huge wine cask lying on its side. Even so, Antisthenes must have been shocked at just how far Diogenes took things to live a life in accordance with these beliefs.ĭiogenes was considered to be mad or crazy because he took the beliefs of the cynics to incredible extremes. At first, Antisthenes refused, but eventually, he was worn down by Diogenes’ persistence.īoth Diogenes and Antisthenes shared many common beliefs but mainly a belief in self-control and the pursuit of excellence in one’s own behavior, which included the rejection of all unnecessary things such as personal possessions and social status. Upon meeting Antisthenes, Diogenes asked to be enrolled in his school and become his student. He was exiled from his hometown following a scandal that involved currency debasement, causing him to lose his citizenship and his move to Athens. He was likely a student of the philosopher Antisthenes, who he met following his arrival in Athens. Ancient Greek Science and Technology – From Antikythera to Pharosĭiogenes of Sinope, however, took these beliefs to an extreme.Learning Ancient Greek Helps Dyslexia, Research Suggests.Such conventions were often ridiculed by the cynics, who believed that only when one has freed oneself from social conventions, such as the desire to chase fame and fortune, can one truly be free. Social conventions, therefore, are a hindrance to a good life because adhering to society’s rules limits one’s freedom. And that people should strive for reason, self-sufficiency, and freedom.

Diogenes twitter how to#

They believed that nature offers the best indication of how to live a good life. The cynics were a group of ancient Greek philosophers who were a separate branch of Socratic philosophy.

And there are more than a few reasons for Plato thinking he was “A Socrates gone mad.” Diogenes: A Cynic Connected with the Philosophy of Socrates And boy oh boy did Diogenes practice what he preached. Instead, he encouraged people to live a life of intentional hardship and not be bound by social conventions. One of the founders of the cynic philosophy, Diogenes believed that people should live simple lives that reject all natural desires for wealth, power, or fame. Diogenes (412 BC- 323 BC) was a Greek philosopher like no other.