#DIOGENES QUOTES FUNNY HOW TO#

The story of how Diogenes and Antisthenes (his former teacher who himself was a student of Socrates) came together is an interesting one.

Sold as a slave, he pointed and said, ' Sell me to this man he needs a master.' The man heeded the advice, and entrusted Diogenes with his household and the education of his children. To get back to his society nickname “dog” I kick off the first few anecdotes that makes this compilation from the cynic:Īs to why he was called a dog, Diogenes replied, ' Because I fawn upon those who give me anything, and bark at those who give me nothing, and bite the rogues. I've never found and I believe I neither shall, one of his caliber. He was a man on his own, his name Diogenes and lived in the City Sinope. In any way whether he was seen as a bum, a grumpy old man or as a dog. In fact, Diogenes teacher Antisthenes - pupil of Socrates - founded the Greek school of cynicism, and Diogenes was and is the most notorious cynic. It was this ultimate determination to follow his own dictates and not adhere to the conventions of society, that he was given the epithet 'dog,' from which the name 'cynic' is derive. He lived in a barrel, lived naked and aside the common society. He lived his life in extreme simplicity, inured to want, and without shame. 412 - 323 B.C.)ĭiogenes is often considered one of the more eccentric, or at the very least untraditional, of the ancient Greek philosophers. He is loyal to those who are good to him he bites those who ill-treat him or his friends, and he's not embarrassed to do what he does to live.Diogenes of Sinope ( aka Diogenes the Cynic/Dog) (c. The dog is honest he is not impressed by grand words, fancy clothes, or titles. When invited to the house of Plato, he trampled upon his carpet, saying that he thereby trampled on the vanity of Plato, to which Plato retorted 'How much pride you expose to view, Diogenes, by seeming not to be proud.'ĭiogenes claimed to have gotten his morality from a dog, and would supposedly really bite at people's ankles.

#DIOGENES QUOTES FUNNY HOW TO#

Coming up to him, Plato said, 'My good Diogenes, if you knew how to pay court to Dionysius, you wouldn't have to wash vegetables.' 'And,' replied Diogenes, 'If you knew how to wash vegetables, you wouldn't have to pay court to Dionysius.' When Plato gave Socrates's definition of man as 'featherless bipeds' and was much praised for the definition, Diogenes plucked a chicken and brought it into Plato's Academy, saying, 'Behold! I've brought you a man.' After this incident, 'with broad flat nails' was added to Plato's definition.ĭiogenes was knee deep in a stream washing vegetables. Plato allowed himself a few moments to collect his thoughts, but Diogenes reached over and, tapping Plato's head with his finger, said 'I think you will find here is the 'emptiness''. 'Where is the 'emptiness' which precedes this empty cup?' asked Diogenes. 'That's because you have the eyes to see the cup,' said Plato, 'but', tapping his head with his forefinger, 'you don't have the intellect with which to comprehend 'cupness'.'ĭiogenes walked up to the table, examined a cup and, looking inside, asked, 'Is it empty?' Plato nodded.

'I can see the cups on the table,' said Diogenes, 'but I can't see the 'cupness''. Plato was discoursing on his theory of ideas and, pointing to the cups on the table before him, said while there are many cups in the world, there is only one 'idea' of a cup, and this cupness precedes the existence of all particular cups. Diogenes and Plato had several run-ins, which have sort of been passed down through the ages (so who knows how much of it is real).

Diogenes quotes funny