Cynicism in philosophy

The founder of cynicism is the disciple of Socrates Antisthenes, and his bright representative is Diogenes Sinopski (he himself called himself the Diogenes-Dog). Antisthenes conducted his conversations in the gymnasium at the temple of Hercules. The gymnasium (the word of the gymnasium of the masculine gender) was called Kinosarg, which literally means "evil dogs" (dog-kine). Hence the name of Cynicism

Socrates regarded Socrates as their teacher, but they could not really continue his work. For the basis of their philosophy they took the practical morality of Socrates, his inherent self-control, calmness, unpretentiousness in food and clothing. Not backed by proper intellectualism, these norms of practical life led to the ideals of self-sufficiency of man, apathy and indifference, supplemented by the requirements of asceticism, constant, sometimes heavy, training of the soul and body.

Diogenes, according to legend, lived in a clay cask, treated small, behaved defiantly, more than once exposed himself to ridicule. The legend says that when Alexander of Macedon told him: "Ask me what you want," Diogenes replied: "Do not shield the sun." Once he stood naked in the rain, attracting everyone's attention. Plato called Diogenes a dog, against which no one objected. The Greeks erected a monument to Diogenes in the form of a dog in gratitude for the fact that he "pointed the simplest way to life".

Gradually the word "cynic" became negative. Unacceptable in cynicism is usually considered a violation of public moral standards. At the heart of such a travesty, spiritual poverty is always found. In our days, cynicism has no excuses, it is simply a very poor, pathetic, degenerate form of philosophizing.

As for epicureanism, stoicism and skepticism, their philosophical content is much richer than cynicism. When analyzing the above-mentioned philosophical schools, one should keep in mind that their representatives clearly distinguished the three components of philosophy: physics, logic and ethics.

Nowadays, a cynic is someone who thinks badly about people and knows that nothing good in life can be expected. We also call a cynical person someone who is ready to spit on moral principles to suit his own goals. The word itself comes from the Greek kunikos, translated "like a dog". In Ancient Greece, the humiliating name referred to the philosophical school founded by the follower of Socrates by Angisfen of Athens (444-366 BC).

Contemporaries compared the followers of this philosophical school to dogs, mainly to emphasize the reluctance of the Cynics to take for granted the generally accepted social values. For their part, these "cynics" gravitated toward asceticism and were convinced that the good of life should be found in harmony with nature, rejecting sensual pleasures, comfort and wealth. One of the most famous cynics was Diogenes Sinopski (412-322 BC), who took the nickname "The Dog" quite seriously: naked wandered the streets, publicly sent out natural needs, slept in a pipe or in a barrel in the local market and barked at those , who, in his opinion, descended from the path of virtue.