Senior Seminar: Cynics and Epicureans

Cynicism and Epicureanism have become little more than bywords for negative sarcasm or hedonism. However, these were two legitimate philosophical schools in antiquity, whose founders offered comprehensive ethical and political doctrines. It could be said that Cynics were the first hippies, urging people to drop out and reject, often emphatically, all forms of social hypocrisy, whereas Epicureans sought a more refined and peaceful pleasure in which to spend their days. In any case, both were deeply apolitical ways of thinking. In this course we will explore ancient source materials and anecdotes to obtain a picture of what these schools intended and how their adherents were viewed by those around them, as well as to discover how the clichés attached to them were formed. Readings will include Xenophon, Diogenes Laertius, Epicurus, Lucretius, Cicero, Epictetus and Lucian, as well as some modern works that draw on these traditions.