| Diogenes Laertius, Lives of Eminent Philosophers (English) (XML Header) [word count] [lemma count] [Diog. Laert.]. | ||
| <<Diog. Laert. 2.12.121 | Diog. Laert. 2.17.126 (Greek) | >>Diog. Laert. 2.17.133 |
Glaucon was a citizen of Athens. Nine dialogues of his are extant in a single volume:
Phidylus.
Euripides.
Amyntichus.
Euthias.
Lysithides.
Aristophanes.
Cephalus.
Anaxiphemus.
Menexenus.
There are also extant thirty-two others, which are considered spurious.
Simmias was a citizen of Thebes. Twenty-three dialogues of his are extant in a single volume:
On Wisdom.
On Reasoning.
On Music.
On Verses.
Of Courage.
On Philosophy.
Of Truth.
On Letters.
On Teaching.
On Art.
On Government.
Of that which is becoming.
Of that which is to be chosen and avoided.
On Friendship.
On Knowledge.
Of the Soul.
On a Good Life.
Of that which is possible.
On Money.
On Life.
What is the beautiful.
On Diligence.
On Love.
Cebes was a citizen of Thebes. Three dialogues of his are extant:
The Tablet.
The Seventh Day.
Phrynichus.
Menedemus belonged to Phaedo's school; he was the son of Clisthenes, a member of the clan called the Theopropidae, of good family, though a builder and a poor man; others say that he was a scenepainter and that Menedemus learnt both trades. Hence, when he had proposed a decree, a certain Alexinius attacked him, declaring that the philosopher was not a proper person to design either a scene or a decree. When Menedemus was dispatched by the Eretrians to Megara on garrison duty, he paid a visit to Plato at the Academy and was so captivated that he abandoned the service of arms.
2.17.126 Asclepiades of Phlius drew him away, and he lived at Megara with Stilpo, whose lectures they both attended.Thence they sailed to Elis, where they joined Anchipylus and Moschus of the school of Phaedo. Down to their time, as was stated in the Life of Phaedo, the school was called the Elian school. Afterwards it was called the Eretrian school, from the city to which my subject belonged.
It would appear that Menedemus was somewhat pompous. Hence Crates burlesques him thus note:
Asclepiades the sage of Phlius and the Eretrian bull;
and Timon as follows note:
A puffing, supercilious purveyor of
humbug.
He was a man of such dignity that, when Eurylochus of Casandrea was invited by Antigonus to court along with Cleïppides, a youth of Cyzicus, he declined the invitation, being afraid that Menedemus would hear of it, so caustic and outspoken was he. When a young gallant would have taken liberties with him, he said not a word but picked up a twig and drew an insulting picture on the ground, until all eyes were attracted and the young man, perceiving the insult, made off. When Hierocles, who was in command of the Piraeus, walked up and down along with him in the shrine of Amphiaraus, and talked much of the capture of Eretria, he made no other reply beyond asking him what Antigonus's object was in treating him as he did.
2.17.128To an adulterer who was giving himself airs he said, "Do you not know that, if cabbage has a good flavour, so for that matter has radish?" Hearing a youth who was very noisy, he said, "See what there is behind you." When Antigonus consulted him as to whether he should go to a rout, he sent a message to say no more than this, that he was the son of a king. When a stupid fellow related something to him with no apparent object, he inquired if he had a farm. And hearing that he had, and that there was a large stock of cattle on it, he said, "Then go and look after them, lest it should happen that they are ruined and a clever farmer thrown away." To one who inquired if the good man ever married, he replied, "Do you think me good or not?" The reply being in the affirmative, he said, "Well, I am married."
2.17.129 Of one who affirmed that there were many good things, he inquired how many, and whether he thought there were more than a hundred. Not being able to curb the extravagance of some one who had invited him to dinner, he said nothing when he was invited, but rebuked his host tacitly by confining himself to olives. However, on account of this freedom of speech he was in great peril in Cyprus with his friend Asclepiades when staying at the court of Nicocreon. For when the king held the usual monthly feast and invited these two along with the other philosophers, we are told that Menedemus said that, if the gathering of such men was a good thing, the feast ought to have been held every day; if not, then it was superfluous even on the present occasion.| Diogenes Laertius, Lives of Eminent Philosophers (English) (XML Header) [word count] [lemma count] [Diog. Laert.]. | ||
| <<Diog. Laert. 2.12.121 | Diog. Laert. 2.17.126 (Greek) | >>Diog. Laert. 2.17.133 |
