Foiled again....

I'm in love with Greek philosophy, specifically the Socratics.  The last few weeks, I've been reading a book on the Cynics, the ancient ascetic philosophers that considered themselves the heir of the Socratic dynasty.


The Cynics were fairly close to the Stoics in a lot of ways.

• The locus of value should be internal and not external 
• The way we estimate external things determines how happy or tranquil we will be.  The more we esteem that which is outside our control the less happy and more subject to the whims of Fate, Fortune, Chance, etc we will be
•  The goal of humans was to live 'according to nature'.  In most cases, they would have agreed that this meant a life close to nature, although this took on other meanings
• Lastly, virtue was the highest achievement of humans.  At the end of the day, our virtue is all we have

Cynics, however, seem to me to be Stoics on steroids.  They take pretty much everything the two have in common and magnify them to the extreme.  They wave off ALL possessions, relationships, social norms, customs, etiquette, wealth and just about anything prized by society.  Picture the crazy beggar in Times Square holding the sign saying 'The End is Near' and you get a picture of the ancient Cynics.  They were the gadflies that nipped at the heals of pretty much anyone whom they thought was trapped by social/cultural tethers.

In addition to magnifying the similarities, Cynics have some unique, interesting traits of their own.

The one I like the most is their sense of humor.  A quote attributed to the Cynic Menippus is perfectly representative of this:

...seek out this one single thing before all else:  arrange the present well and run along, laughing a lot and taking nothing seriously.

They are the folks who take the 'whims of Fate' and laugh at them.  When you have no attachments and no worldly concerns, then laughing at the vicissitudes of life only seems the natural response.  This sense of humor informed much of what they did:  masturbating in public, calling themselves 'dogs', ridiculing Emporers, farting, and the list goes on and on.

Another trait that stands out is their ridicule of the wealthy, rich, and powerful.    Self-sufficiency, in their eyes, is the hallmark of living 'in accord with nature'.  The rich, the Cynics argued, depended on others: slaves, artisans, cooks, etc for every aspect of their lives.  This was a disgrace to being human and made them weak, lazy, and worthy of the most acerbic wit the Cynics could muster.

Lastly, the Cynics lived in some pretty interesting circumstances.  They wore thin, ugly cloaks, carried sticks, no shoes, long beards and hair, stunk, farted a lot, and were generally gross to look at (let along smell!).  They had no homes and ate a simple diet of beans, lentils, and other stuff they came across in their wanderings.  They had no qualms about begging for food and would simultaneously beg and make fun of their benefactors at the same time.  They believed that life any other way was a bastardization of 'natural' living and would limit their freedom to be who they should be.

Now, I have a hard time imagining a viable philosophy of life where one has to give up all comfort, relationships, etc in favor of a mendicant life of hardship, hunger, homelessness, and social exile.  To me, a 'philosophy of life' helps you live better in the world, be more productive, and have a greater degree of tranquility.

That led me to consider that perhaps the difference between the Stoics and the Cynics is that the latter were not trying to provide a philosophy of life so much as to act as Foils for society.  Their crazy actions, weird clothes and grooming habits, homelessness, ridicule of the rich, etc might have been a way to provide a counter-argument for the laziness, self-importance, indulgence, and fakeness that they saw around them.  A way to show us that there's another way to live.

Either way, I think it is important to take seriously what they did/said and not just dismiss it as a set of weirdos who were mentally unstable.  As a matter of fact, their way of living was not unique to them alone.  Many other groups in other cultures served the same purpose and went about life in similar ways.  We can learn a lot from their criticisms.  Here are just a few things that stand out:

• A life that is focused on externals alone is empty and vapid
• Depending on others exclusively erodes that aspect of us that makes us most human:  our freedom
• Respect is earned through our virtue not our status
• We are meant to be close to nature, not removed completely as so many of us are
• We are defined not by what we HAVE, but by what we ARE
• Social customs change and we should never be slaves to them

These are just a few of the things the Cynics can teach us.  I believe that the ancient Greek philosophers got a lot of things right.  From the Cynics to the Epicureans to the Stoics, we can learn a lot about our humanity by listening and paying attention to their words.
 

Take care,

Brett