ANCIENT PHILOSOPHY 13: HELLENISTIC AGE

Starts 323 (death of Alexander), ends in 31 (end of Roman Republic, beginning of Roman Empire)

  • Athens still polis, but with limited freedom, emergence of schools
  • Alexandria begins philology, preservation of past texts
  • commentaries, catalogues
  • Pierre Hadot: Hellenistic age had political interests too

Schools:

  • Academy
  • Lyceum
  • Garden (Epicurious)
  • Stoa (Zeno)
    [similar to Plato’s academy, which was then innovative, but likely modeled after the pythagoreans]

Itinerant/Travelling philosophers

  • Diogenes: Cynicism (questioning social conventions, for return to a natural life, only ethical works)
  • Pyrrho: Pirrhonism (skeptic inspired by Indians, truth and falsity are indistinguishable, must seek lack of anxiety, passions, affections, lack of pleasure and pain)