To achieve their goals, the Cynics underwent askēsis, disciplined training and practice. Cynics argued that self-sufficiency ( autarkeia) and freedom ( eleutheria) are the goals of life. Like the plucked chicken, the Cynic lifestyle demonstrated the Cynic philosophy instead of just talking about it.
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To Become Free and Self-Sufficient You Have to Practice This natural life is what Cynics wished for all people. They lived freely and naturally, unencumbered by possessions or social anxieties. He found only that he was happy being called a ‘dog’ if the people in cities were called ‘humans.’ Dogs were better people. Famously, he walked around cities during the daytime with a lit lantern, saying he was looking for an anthrōpos, a human being, a real example of what humanity could become. When Diogenes looked at most people, he scarcely found anyone living up to their human potential. Like dogs, they judged character well–examining people’s actions, not their titles or purses. Like dogs, Cynics lived carefree-unworried about rent, food, or manners. Diogenes owned the label, explaining that he earned the nickname by wagging his tail at those who gave him things, barking at those who didn’t, and biting bad people. Cynics earned this title by living like dogs, unconcerned for human convention and striving only for bare necessities. The word “Cynic” is almost a direct transliteration of the Greek kunikos, meaning “dog-like.” To be called “Cynic” is to be compared to a dog. Everywhere they went, they tried to convince people to abandon their material possessions and live simply and freely in nature. And third, they held a staff-a glorified walking stick that helped them to move from city to city in the ancient world. Second, each carried a pēra, a pouch that contained all their material possessions. It served not only as a garment but also as something to sleep on and in, as they had no permanent homes. First, they wore a tribōn, a threadbare cloak.
The Mangy Dogs of Greece and the Natural Lives They LedĬynic philosophers were easy to recognize in the ancient world. This essay summarizes the main values in ancient Cynicism, especially those present in the life of Diogenes of Sinope. And it does so through training both the body and mind to live as simply as possible. Rather, Cynics argued that philosophy studies the lives of actual people and teaches us to live well and prepares us for any fortune. Cynics foremost rebuked civilization and valued nature.įor Diogenes and the Cynics, philosophy was not about conjuring hypothetical scenarios or pondering ancient mysteries. Yet their philosophy was more than clever refutations. Cynics were masters at using spectacle and wit to argue for their positions. He only needed a chicken and a couple of words. Diogenes didn’t need ornate theory or erudite rhetoric to disprove Plato. Cynics exercised parrēsia, or direct, plain, frank, and free speech. The story of Plato, Diogenes, and the chicken is emblematic of Cynicism. He refuted Plato by plucking a chicken, taking it to his lecture, and announcing, “Here’s Plato’s human!” He provided a flesh-and-blood example of a featherless, bipedal animal that no one would consider human. Diogenes of Sinope (404-323 BCE), the first great Cynic, fit into the second group.
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He thought long and hard about how to define “human” and concluded that humans are featherless, bipedal animals. Plato (429-347 BCE) fits in the first group. Some ancient Greek philosophers only used words to investigate philosophical problems.
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