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- a person who believes that people are only interested in themselves and are not sincere: I'm too much of a cynic to believe that he'll keep his promise. A cynic might say that the government has only taken this measure because it is concerned about its declining popularity.
dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/cynic
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Oct 15, 2023 · The core belief of the Cynic philosophy is that people, you and me, are reasoning animals, and that, as reasoning animals, our life’s purpose is to use that reason to decide right from wrong, live with virtue, live in alignment with the laws of nature, and live ascetically while rejecting the social convention that conflicts with any of this.
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- Etymology
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Cynicism originates in the philosophical schools of ancient Greece that claim a Socratic lineage. To call the Cynics a school though, immediately raises a difficulty for so unconventional and anti-theoretical a group. Their primary interests are ethical, but they conceive of ethics more as a way of living than as a doctrine in need of explication. ...
The origin of the Cynic name kunikos, a Greek word meaning dog-like, is a point of contention. Two competing stories explain the source of the name using the figure of Antisthenes (who Diogenes Laertius identifies controversially as the original Cynic), and yet a third explanation uses the figure of Diogenes of Sinope. First, Antisthenes is said to...
A second possible derivation comes from Antisthenes alleged nickname Haplokuōn, a word that probably means a dog pure and simple, and is presumably referring to his way of living. Though Antisthenes was known for a certain rudeness and crudeness that could have led to such a name, and later authors, including Aelian, Epictetus, and Stobaeus, identi...
If Antisthenes was not the first Cynic by name, then the origin of the appellation falls to Diogenes of Sinope, an individual well known for dog-like behavior. As such, the term may have begun as an insult referring to Diogenes style of life, especially his proclivity to perform all of his activities in public. Shamelessness, which allowed Diogenes...
Finally, because Cynicism denotes a way of living, it is inaccurate to equate Cynicism with the other schools of its day. The Cynics had no set space where they met and discoursed, such as the Garden, the Lyceum, or the Academy; for Diogenes and Crates, the streets of Athens provide the setting for both their teaching and their training. Moreover, ...
The major figures within Cynicism form the pivotal points within a lineage traced from Antisthenes, Socrates companion and a major interlocutor in the Socratic dialogues of Xenophon (see especially his Memorabilia and Symposium), through his student, Diogenes of Sinope, to Diogenes pupil Crates, and from Crates to both Hipparchia of Maronea, the fi...
Some others among the more notable Cynics include Metrocles of Maronea, brother to Hipparchia and pupil of Crates, Menippus, Demonax of Cyprus, Bion of Borysthenes, and Teles. Thinkers heavily influenced by Cynic thought include Zeno of Citium, Cleanthes of Assos, Aristo of Chios, Musonius Rufus, Epictetus, Dio Chrysostom, and the emperor Julian. T...
The Socratic schools tend to trace their lineage directly back to Socrates and the Cynics are no exception. As such, the historical authenticity of this heredity is suspect. Nevertheless, it accurately tracks a kind of intellectual transmission that begins with Antisthenes and is passed on to Diogenes, Crates, and Zeno. Cynics seem to have survived...
Diogenes uses his body to upend the conventional association of decorum with the good. He breaks etiquette by publicly carrying out activities an Athenian would typically perform in private. For example, he eats, drinks, and masturbates in the marketplace, and ridicules the shame felt when ones body is unruly or clumsy. This does not mean, however,...
The examples of Cynic training are multiple: Antisthenes praised toil and hardship as goods; Diogenes of Sinope walked barefoot in the snow, hugged cold statues, and rolled about in the scalding summer sand in his pithos; Crates rid himself of his considerable wealth in order to become a Cynic. The ability to live without any of the commodities usu...
The Cynics, then, cast the notion of citizenship in a new light. To the Greek male of the Classical and Hellenistic period, citizenship was of utmost value. The restrictions on citizenship made it a privilege and these exclusions are, to the Cynic, absurd. Under cosmopolitanism, the Cynic challenges the civic affiliation of the few by opening the p...
Finally, the mark of the Cynic is found throughout the texts of literature and philosophy. Menippean Satire has a clear debt, and Diogenes of Sinope in particular appears as a character in literary and philosophical contexts; Dante, for example, situates Diogenes with other virtuous but pagan philosophers in the first level of hell and Nietzsche is...
Jun 14, 2023 · Cynicism, a philosophical movement originating from Ancient Greece, has played a significant role in shaping various aspects of human thought. Over centuries, it has transformed and evolved, adopting new forms and interpretations, making it one of the most intriguing subjects of philosophical study.
The Cynics (Ancient Greek: Κυνικοί, Latin: Cynici) rejected all conventional desires for wealth, power, glory, social recognition, conformity, and worldly possessions and even flouted such conventions openly and derisively in public. The first philosopher to outline these themes was Antisthenes, who had been a pupil of Socrates in the late 400s BC.
Jan 20, 2022 · Since 1964, the percentage of Americans who say they trust the government to do what is right “just about always” or “most of the time” has fallen 53 points
- David Mazella
Nov 25, 2020 · Broadly described, a cynic is a person given to casting doubt on the motives that drive other people. For example, you may say that you gave a sizable donation to rebuilding Notre Dame because you care about its enduring religious, historic and cultural significance in and beyond France.
Nov 5, 2003 · Americans have long had a cynical view of politics and politicians. But these attitudes are no more widespread today than before the overtime presidential election of 2000. In fact, on several measures, the public is considerably less negative toward politics now than in the mid-1990s, when anti-Washington hostility was rampant.
